


Sonic Earthbound

by Mara Sadowski (Calamitys_Child)



Series: Sonic Earthbound Series [1]
Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Drama, F/M, Multi, Other, Romance, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-14 01:53:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 144,581
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29411493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Calamitys_Child/pseuds/Mara%20Sadowski
Summary: When a demonstration of a new cutting-edge virtual reality machine goes horribly wrong, Alexandra Parker accidentally creates a link between two worlds. One trip to the hospital later, and Alex discovers a strange new ability: she can disappear and reappear somewhere else. There's just one problem. She can't seem to control it.Luckily, Alex's new roommate knows a thing or two about Chaos Control and is more than up for the task of teaching her. But is Alex up for the challenge that comes with protecting him from exposure to a public who believes he's only a fictional character?Between school, her new crush, amorous androids, and finding all of the Chaos Emeralds, Alex seems to have her work cut out for her; and all while avoiding the pursuit of a power-hungry technophile.While Alex helps Sonic and Tails navigate a world in which they are pop-culture icons to find a way back home, they in turn have a thing or two to teach her about what it really means to grow up and the truth about leaving childhood behind.
Relationships: OC/OC, Sonic the Hedgehog/OC
Series: Sonic Earthbound Series [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2173512
Comments: 6
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is a slice of life story with Sonic characters. AU. Story is not marked as "Mature," as I believe it can be enjoyed by younger audiences, but there may be some mature themes as well as language. Reader's discretion advised.
> 
> Disclaimer: Sonic The Hedgehog and friends belong to Sega. Alexandra, other Original Characters, and the plot belong to me. This is a fanfiction; purely for fun, not for monetary gain.

The sun was on the last quarter of its descent towards the horizon. It had recently rained, and it looked like there was more yet to come, giving the atmosphere a greenish hue. Something about it had the feel of a calm before a storm.

Sonic stood beneath a great camphor tree, tapping his foot. He could've been enjoying a chili dog dinner right now. Instead, he was standing in the middle of a forgotten forest waiting for Tails.

The kid had told him he detected a significant chaos energy reading somewhere out in the westernmost region of South Island, something he insisted was cause for concern. At the time, Sonic had been putting the finishing touches on a well-deserved nap in his favorite lounge chair at one of South Island's famous white-sand beaches. Unable to swim, Sonic always maintained a healthy distance from the ocean, but he loved the beach and the sound of the waves hitting the rocks. It was 'nature's music,' as his friend, Mighty, would have said.

  
"Tails," Sonic had said at the time, with more than a hint of irritation in his voice. "Can't you see I'm busy?"

"But it's got to be the Chaos Emeralds, Sonic!"

"Yeah, sure. What else would it be?" he said, lifting his sunglasses off his eyes to peer at his young fox friend.

"But all seven, Sonic!"

"So?"

"So," Tails said exasperatedly, "All seven emeralds are rarely ever together in the same place!"

"Tails, step to the left. You're blocking my sun."

With a huff, Tails did so, but proceeded. "What if it's Robotnik who's got them?"

"Robotnik's base isn't even on the west side, Tails," Sonic had muttered as he flipped his shades down back over his eyes and crossed his arms behind his head.

"Well," said Tails petulantly, " _I'm_ going to investigate. You sure you don't want to come along?"

"Tell ya what," said Sonic with yawn. "You go on ahead and I'll meet up with you. Even if you leave now, by the time you get there, I'll have finished my nap and I'll be there just a couple minutes after you."

"Fiiine," said Tails with a sigh. "Meet me in the Old Forest by the great camphor tree. You know... the one we used to play on when we were kids?"

"You're _still_ a kid, Tails," Sonic reminded him with a smirk. Although his eyes were closed behind his sunglasses, he could almost hear Tails sticking his tongue out at him. "Not very mature, lil' bro. Ain't helping that whole 'kid' image of yours."

Tails glared at his older friend. "Hmph! Thanks for your help," he muttered as he flew off.

"See you when you get there!" Sonic called after him, before rolling onto his side to finish his nap.

Now, Sonic was at the aforementioned rendezvous point, and there was no sign of Tails. That in itself was a little odd. Sonic knew he, personally, would get here in no-time flat. But his little sidekick still should've arrived first, especially if he took the Tornado. Something was fishy here.

Sonic suddenly couldn't shake the feeling that something bad had happened to his young friend. Maybe Tails was right. Perhaps Robotnik was up to some scheme with the Chaos Emeralds. If that was the case, this was a dangerous mission indeed, and one he shouldn't have let Tails go on by himself. And what was worse, if something _had_ happened, it was all _his_ fault. Why hadn't he just gone with Tails when he asked him?

_I have to find him!_

And so, Sonic zoomed through the woods, calling his friend's name.

"TAILS? TAILS, WHERE ARE YOU?"

No sign of him. He had to keep looking. But where to search?

_Tails said he detected the energy source out on the west side of South Island. If that's the case, I should just keep heading west until I find him!_

It also occurred to Sonic that upon being refused, Tails could have just gone back home to his workshop. But would he? After all, when Tails got something into his head, he was determined to do it. It didn't seem likely he'd pass up an investigation like this. Sonic only hoped curiosity hadn't led his two-tailed friend into danger.

With a fresh burst of speed, Sonic shot out of the forest and into the rolling green hills beyond, westward bound. Eventually, green fields turned to rockier terrain, and rocky terrain to sand. The sun was a mere glow on the horizon and fresh storm clouds were rolling in as Sonic neared the west coast of the island. A flash of lightning lit up the sky accompanied with the ominous roll of thunder in the distance.

"It was a dark and stormy night," Sonic narrated as he zoomed along the shore, sending hermit crabs scrambling from their sandy hovels. "Our hero's best buddy had gone missing and there was a foul stench in the air... And it smelled like a rotten Eggman!"

One particularly nasty storm cloud chose that moment to unleash a torrent of ran. The drops pelted Sonic's face like several ice-cold needles.

"Eyuck!" said Sonic, wincing against the onslaught. He went faster, just managing to outrun the dark cloud. But when he glanced over his shoulder, he could see a wall of a rain following at his heels.

 _Bad weather sure is persistent,_ he thought miserably.

There was another flash of lightning and Sonic stopped in his tracks.

"Wait... What the—?"

In that brief moment when the lightening had lit up the sky, he swore he'd seen something out on the water. Something big.

Sonic squinted his eyes, trying to see past the rain and through the encroaching darkness. He waited for another lightning flash. There it was again! A large dome-shaped structure out in the ocean! And one that Sonic was pretty certain hadn't been there the last time he'd visited this side of the island.

"Yeah... This smells like Robotnik, all right."

But how could he get there? It was out in the middle of the water. Sonic shuddered just thinking about it. The sky was black as pitch, but the flashes of lightning were coming at shorter intervals. When the next lightning flash lit up the sky, Sonic let out a shout of surprise.

The domed structure... it wasn't there anymore!

_But that's impossible!_

A giant structure like that couldn't have disappeared. Or had it?

 _Maybe it's still there,_ thought Sonic. _Maybe it's just gone invisible._

This would have been a silly conclusion... if it weren't Robotnik, of course. Dr. Robotnik had some serious tech. In fact, cloaking devices were one of his specialties.

"Invisible or not, how do I _get_ there?" Sonic muttered to himself.

A humming sound filled the air. Sonic looked up. A hovercraft soared low over the beach, presumably to avoid the lightning. He recognized that vehicle. It was one of several similar belong to Robotnik's personal fleet.

Smirking, Sonic chased after it. No doubt it was headed for that cloaked structure in the distance. If he could hitch a ride with the thing...

He spied a large piece of driftwood, conveniently shaped like a ramp. Grinning to himself, he ran along it and launched himself into the air. He landed atop the hovercraft, letting himself slide down to the back and braced himself where the pilot mecha couldn't spot him.

As the hovercraft flew over the water, Sonic clung tighter to the back of the vehicle. Oh, he really hated water. Was this really such a good idea? What was he thinking, riding this thing across the ocean?

_Oh man... This was stupid, Sonic. Really, really stupid!_

But if Tails was in trouble...

Sonic took a long, deep breath. He had to do what he could to rescue his pal. And furthermore, if Robotnik really _was_ up to something, and it certainly seemed like he was if this invisible fortress in the middle of the ocean was any indication, it was Sonic's job to put a stop to it.

He thought back to what Tails had said about detecting a significant spike in chaos energy at the west side of the island and his concerns that Robotnik might have all the Chaos Emeralds.

_'All seven emeralds are rarely ever together in the same place!'_

A high chaos energy output possibly coming from all seven Chaos Emeralds, Tails missing, and now this mysterious fortress out in the middle of the water? No, this didn't bode well at all.

As if in echo to his thoughts, there was another ominous lightning flash across the sky, followed by another. Sonic squinted. No, wait... That second flash... That wasn't lightning. That was something else entirely! The fortress had appeared again, completely encased within a bright white light. And the light... it was expanding outwards!

"That's not lightning," murmured Sonic. "That's..."

The trajectory of the light was increasing rapidly, growing almost blindingly bright. With a loud 'Fwoom!' it shot out across the water.

"Oh, shiii---!"

The resulting shockwave knocked Sonic unconscious...

And off the aircraft.


	2. Chapter 2

_Where did my life go so wrong?_

This was Alex's thought as she followed her young cousin, Liam, through the annual Starlight Gamer's Convention. She grimaced as a group of female cosplayers walked by, leaving, as her grandmother might have once said, nothing to the imagination.

"I can _not_ believe you talked me into this," she told Liam.

"What do you mean?" he asked. "You're a gamer, aren't you?"

"I haven't been a gamer since Dad passed away."

"Well, all the more reason. You need to get out and live a little."

"This... is living?" asked Alex as she gazed around at the overweight man-children, hipster gamers, and girls dressed as slutty versions of their favorite video game characters.

"Don't be so judgy."

"First you drag me to that god-awful Sonic movie that raped my childhood – Dad's probably rolling in his grave over that one – and now this."

"Alex, you were like the _only_ person who didn't like that movie," said Liam with a roll of his eyes beneath his shaggy blonde hair. "Anyway, just give this con a chance. You might see something you like."

"I highly doubt—"

"Oh cool!" Liam interrupted, no longer paying any attention to her. "They're screening the new Pokemon game! Let's go!"

"Nuh-uh. No thank you. I haven't given a shit about Pokemon since generation three or four. Not since ice cream cones started qualifying as a Pokemon. Count me out."

"Suit yourself. See ya' later!"

And with that, Liam ran off, leaving Alex utterly alone in a sea of ravenous gaming addicts.

 _I wanna go home,_ she thought miserably. But she couldn't leave without her cousin. Her aunt would kill her. After all, she was supposed to be 'supervising' him. Granted, in this type of environment, she felt it was more appropriate that Liam keep an eye on _her._

_Well, just standing around isn't an option._

Indeed, standing around looking idle at a place like this was always a bad idea. A lone girl at a gamer's convention brought all sorts of unwanted attention. With that in mind, Alex began to stroll, trying to look even mildly interested in what was going on around her.

The first thing to truly draw her eye was a demonstration on a stage at the back of the convention hall. The person speaking to the gathered crowd was a man who, despite being in his mid to late 50s, was unconventionally attractive with tidy, salt and pepper hair and a closely groomed beard. He wore an Atari T-shirt beneath a gray blazer and blue jeans. Behind him was a giant projection screen and, just beneath it, something that looked like an egg-shaped sleeping pod out of a science fiction movie.

"Once a prototype for what was supposed to be the Dreamcast, it was rejected by Sega, and is now an independent project, which will be crowdfunded through a kickstarter. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, you heard correctly. The Sega Dreamcast, a failure in the video game industry and remembered only as a cult favorite that was discontinued after just two years, could have been _this –_ an ahead-of-its-time, full-fledged virtual reality machine. This technology outpaces the Oculus Rift by a landslide. _This_ , my friends, is a fully immersive virtual reality where you quite literally go _inside_ the game!"

"But what exactly does that mean?" asked someone in the crowd.

"An excellent question! Perhaps you've seen the Matrix? Or better yet, Ready Player One?"

Nods and murmurs of ascent.

"Aha! I thought so. This... is that!"

Alex grimaced. This kind of guy was the worst. A CEO of a startup company looking to create the next generation of video games to enslave the consumer-driven masses and sell at ridiculous prices that only the wealthiest gamers could afford. Alex couldn't help needling him a little as she called out over the crowd.

"The Matrix is about a post-apocalyptic future in which humans are unknowingly trapped inside of a simulated reality while intelligent machines use their bodies as an energy source. And Ready Player One is a story about corporate greed, corruption, and terrorism via virtual reality gaming. Are you sure that's what you want to compare your little invention to? Doesn't sound very positive."

At first, the man appeared flustered as he searched the crowd for the intrusive voice who dared to embarrass him. When his eyes fell on Alex, his grin widened and he laughed as though he found her amusing.

"It is only similar in the mechanics of the operation," he explained as though she were a simpleton. "Allow me to elaborate. This system is _total immersion,_ meaning you are placed in a dream-state, except that you are entirely lucid. The computer stimulates your brain directly, engaging all five senses so you feel as though you are actually, physically experiencing the adventure. But that's not all. Because you are placed in a lucid REM sleep, you are able to create your own adventure! Whatever you think up... or _dream_ up... becomes real in the game."

A shockwave of awe and excitement ran through the crowd, but Alex was not convinced. "You said this was invented circa 2000, around the time the Dreamcast came out? I'm sorry, but I have trouble believing such technology was possible back then."

"On the contrary! While this was, in fact, ultimately intended to be the original next generation Dreamcast console, the first prototype was in development as early as the 1980s."

"Before even the _Genesis_ was first developed?" said Alex incredulously. "That's even more unbelievable! You're crazy! There's no way that thing works. This is a hoax."

"Oh, ye of little faith! Perhaps you would like to be the first to try it! How about it, Miss...?"

"Alex. Alex Parker."

"Miss Parker, how would you like to be our first volunteer?"

"Strap myself into that machine and temporarily go brain-dead? Thanks, but no thanks."

"Oh, it isn't anything like that! It's as I said, it merely lulls you to into a dream state. Hence, the not-so-aptly named Dreamcast, whose name _should_ have belonged to _this_ system. Think of it as taking a nap and having your very own daydream. You will have complete control of your dreams and therefore create your own video game to suit your particular tastes. And when you wish to end the game, you simply say aloud, 'Wake me up,' and the computer ends the simulation and you awaken right away, feeling none the worse for it."

Alex crossed her arms, arching an eyebrow at the man. Of course he wanted her to be his guinea pig. But she refused to be a performing monkey for some hotshot entrepreneur.

"You'll be making history, Miss Parker!"

Encouraging cheers and chants of "Try it! Try it! Try it!" erupted from the crowd.

Not entirely immune to peer pressure, Alex let out a long sigh.

"Fine."

"All right! Come on up! Everyone, let's give our volunteer a round of applause!"

As the crowd applauded and cheered Alex on, the man extended his hand to her, waving her up onto the stage. "C'mon, Miss Parker. Don't be shy now..."

Reluctantly, Alex ascended the stage and, equally reluctant, shook the man's hand.

"Allow me to introduce myself, Miss Parker. I'm Edgar Roman, President, CEO, and head developer of Centurion Technologies. Thanks for coming up here today. Are you ready to experience the technological marvel that is the Centurion REMgage?"

He offered her a winning smile. Alex could see he wore a barely noticeable microphone headset that amplified his voice for the crowd. He motioned her over to the egg-shaped pod, which looked like a recliner chair from a futuristic sci-fi movie, with many complicated-looking computer components attached to it.

"It's time to see the future of perception first hand, Miss Parker."

Alex gazed apprehensively at the machine. "Um... this thing _has_ been safety tested, right?"

Edgar Roman laughed off her concerns. "I promise you, it is as safe as it can possibly be. You think after close to 30 years of development we wouldn't have worked the bugs out?"

"Honestly, what concerns me is that it took 30 years in the first place," she mumbled.

"The system is positively flawless and is perfectly safe for the general public," he assured her, pushing her closer to the pod. Then, speaking to the crowd again – "Once inside the pod, the headset emits soothing waves into your mind, lulling you into a state of total relaxation, but your mind is still very much active and responsive to external stimuli. So, while Miss Parker will be fully immersed into the dream world of _her_ creation, she can still talk to us and let us know how she's feeling. _And_ we'll be able to see everything _she_ sees on these big monitors." He turned back to Alex and ushered her closer to the pod. "C'mon then, Miss Parker. Have a seat."

Heart pounding and wishing very much that she was better at resisting peer pressure, Alex took a seat. No sooner had she done so, the seat began to recline, eliciting an alarmed squeal from Alex. Once fully horizontal, the dome shaped covering of the pod began to lower, as though wishing to encase her in a comfy cocoon, perhaps to facilitate the desire to go to sleep.

Feeling claustrophobic and suddenly regretting her decision to play guinea pig, Alex reached out and grasped Edgar's hand.

"M-Mr. Roman," she stammered. "I've changed my mind. I don't think I like this."

With a chuckle, Edgar extracted his hand from her grasp. "It's alright. Trust me. You're about to make history as the first player of the most in-depth VR system in the entire world. I've been waiting years for this demonstration. You can't back out on me now, Miss Parker. Besides, the system is already gearing up for sedation mode."

"S-Sedation?"

"Just try to relax and start thinking of what you want to play. Maybe... think of your favorite video game, huh?"

"B-But—"

The rest of her sentence was drowned out by a low humming from the machine. She heard a soft, soothing female voice speak to her.

"Welcome to the REMgage. Prepare your mind... for total immersion."

The dome closed fully atop her and the internal lighting dimmed until she was plunged into total darkness. Alex's gasp of surprise died on her lips as the system pumped the sedation signal into her mind. Her body went slack as sleep claimed her.

Edgar Roman smiled at the audience. "She's out like a light folks... and yet, still very much with it. As I said, it takes what you want to dream about and generates an immersive game world for you to experience first-hand. Let's see what Miss Parker wants to play."

He turned back to the pod and spoke directly to Alex. "Miss Parker... Let your mind take over. Create your perfect game world. What kind of games do _you_ like? What was your favorite game growing up as a little girl? Show us what you've got in mind."

***

At first, Alex knew nothing but darkness. But at the sound of Edgar's voice, it was as though someone flipped a switch and she was bathed in a bright white light. The space in which she stood could best be described as blank space; a great white, nothingness. If she'd been claustrophobic before, this was the antithesis. It was _too much_ space. Far too much. And yet, at Edgar's subliminal messaging, Alex was helpless but to think back to her favorite video games growing up as a child.

It all started when she was very young, playing with her father on his old Sega Genesis. As though this thought had the power to create life, suddenly, beneath her feet sprouted tiny blades of grass. They continued to manifest until she found herself in a veritable field of vibrant green grass with tall, bouncing flowers which stood at waist height, their triangular petals turning slowly like windmills. Wooden bridges formed over crystal blue ravines, and palm trees manifested throughout.

Alex's jaw dropped as she gazed around her. It was all here! It was all really here! She could touch the palm trees, feel their rough bark, the softness of the grass, and the coolness of a phantom breeze.

"This is... It's Green Hill Zone! Holy shit, I'm really here! I can feel it! I can touch it! Oh man, I can even smell it! It smells like grass and... and coconuts... OW!"

One such coconut had just bopped her on the head, thrown by a robot monkey in a nearby tree. He let out a chattering laugh which sounded disturbingly mechanical.

"Ngh... Seems like there may be a bit of 'Emerald Hill' in here, too," she said, wincing and rubbing the back of her head. She wasn't so sure she liked the idea that she could feel pain. Hopefully Mr. Roman had the good sense to have the pain transmitters turned down low, especially if there were any more badniks in the area.

As though spawned by the very thought, a robot fish with razor sharp teeth leapt out of the ravine and over the bridge. Alex screeched to a halt just in time to avoid its jaws.

 _It's too dangerous to proceed unarmed,_ she thought, _But I can't exactly roll into a ball and do a spin-dash. I could really use a weapon._

With a flash, Link's Master Sword appeared in her hands.

"Woah! I can combine video games?! No way! This is awesome! Time to slice through some badniks!"

She crossed the bridge, swinging the sword and gutting the robotic fish, sending bolts and scrap metal flying.

 _But what if I come across Robotnik?_ she wondered. _Surely I can't defeat him with a sword, no matter how cool or flashy it is._

Alex heard Mr. Roman's voice speaking, as though from a great distance. "And _this_ , friends, is the amazing power of the REMgage! It's not operating on a pre-planned program. There's no games plugged into this machine. It all works on the power of the human mind! Whatever adventure _you_ desire... the REMgage creates!"

Before long, Alex came upon wide open space. The field was empty, save for a few grassy platforms floating in the air.

"Wait..." she said, glancing around. "Is this a boss fight? That was quick. I only took a few steps."

Suddenly, charging in around her were a plethora of badniks. Alex turned in a slow circle, tightening her grip on the sword as she was surrounded.

"O-kaaay... I'm... I'm not sure I'm thinking this."

Oddly, the badnicks did not seem interested in engaging her and, in fact, did not approach any closer than just outside the apparent battle field. It was as though something, or someone, was keeping them at bay.

Then, from somewhere unseen, a voice spoke to her.

"Welcome... You must be the one I've been waiting for."

"H-Hello?" said Alex, searching for the source of the voice. "Uh... M-Mr. Roman?" Could Edgar Roman even hear her? Was she talking out loud in the 'real world' or only in the game? And if she was talking in the game, could everyone hear her on the screen?

But despite Mr. Roman's earlier assurances that he could still hear her and that she could hear him, Alex got no response from Edgar Roman. Instead, this other voice continued to speak; a low, imposing, almost haughty-sounding voice which seemed to be coming from everywhere and nowhere at once.

"It took much work and many different X factors to line up just perfectly, but everything has finally fallen into place according to my plans. I knew sooner or later that dolt Roman would activate _my_ machine. And with just the right human receiver – that would be _you_ , my dear – the passage between worlds would be ready! And I thank you ever so much for your assistance. But now, it's time for me to make my big come-back!"

Alex chuckled nervously. "Heh, heh... Okay, Mr. Roman. This is kinda funny, but, like, not _that_ funny, you know?"

Suddenly, all of the badniks surrounding Alex began clacking, clanging, snapping, and revving, creating a cacophony of awful metallic sounds as if someone had ordered them all to 'put their hands together' at a concert.

Alex dropped the sword and placed her hands over her ears. "Ngh! I thought you said it was like _lucid_ dreaming!" she shouted. "I'm not thinking any of this up, so what's happening? Mr. Roman? Mr. Roman!"

Damn. What was that phrase she was supposed to say to pull herself out of this? "C-Computer... uh... end simulation?"

No. Not that.

The clacking and clanking grew louder until a swirling white vortex tore into the fabric of space above her.

"H-Hey!" shouted Alex. "This isn't me! I'm not doing this! Someone get me outta here!"

Above her, the swirling white void began to grow bigger. And from within it, that same mysterious voice shouted a command.

"CHAOS CONTROL!!!"

The noise grew louder. The vortex wider and brighter. Alex's head felt like it was about to split open. She fell to her knees, screaming.

***

Outside the VR simulation, Mr. Roman and his assistants were scrambling to try to disengage the machine. Roman turned to the crowd with a nervous smile and raised his hands in what was intended to be a calming gesture.

"It's alright, folks. It's alright. Just a minor glitch. Everything is fine. Please bear with us."

He spun towards his assistants who were working frantically on the connected computer consoles. Through clenched teeth, he growled at them. "Get her out! NOW!"

His assistants looked panicked as they tried everything they could think of to do. "We can't, Mr. Roman. We're completely locked out of the system. It's like someone has taken control of it!"

"Just pull the plug! Shut it off!"

The assistants looked panicked. "Sir! There's no telling what that'll do to the young lady!"

"I'll tell you what I'll do to _you_ if you don't Turn. It. Off!!"

The projector screen and all the computer monitors fizzled out and a bright white light blasted outwards from the machine, emitting an EMP shockwave which plunged the entire convention into darkness. The white shockwave continued its trajectory across the city, knocking out power grids, computer systems, and vehicles all across town.

At ground zero of the shockwave, the REMgage's system was offline.

And... so was Alex Parker.


	3. Chapter 3

A soft, low hum. The sounds of a television game show. These were the sounds Alex awoke to. She opened her eyes, blinking against the abrasive brightness of the overhead fluorescent lights. 

Bright... White...

Alex shot up with a cry and was immediately seized by the shoulders.

"Alexandra! Alex, it's okay. You're all right! It's me."

Alex blinked and shook her head. As her vision unblurred, she found herself gazing into the concerned face of a woman with long blonde hair and far too much eye makeup.

"A-Aunt Dena?"

Aunt Dena smiled with relief. "Oh, thank heavens!" she pulled Alex into a tight hug.

"Wh-What happened?" asked Alex.

Aunt Dena held her at arms' length, her bright blue eyes studying Alex's face. "You're in the hospital, Alex. There was... an accident."

"An accident? A car accident? Liam! Is he okay? I don't remember—"

"Liam's fine. It wasn't a car accident."

Then, from the doorway of the hospital room – "Hey, Mom. I... Oh! She's awake!"

Alex's cousin ran to her bedside, brushing his messy straw-colored hair out of his eyes to appraise her.

"Oh man, Alex! When that machine blew up, I was afraid your brain got permanently fried!"

"B-Blew up???"

"Well," said Liam, "It didn't exactly blow up, per se. It sorta kinda like malfunctioned and gave off this wicked cool EMP pulse and the city's whole power grid went down! I thought you'd gotten electrocuted! The paramedics came, but no one could wake you up. The doctor said you were in a coma and might not—"

"LIAM!" his mother interrupted sharply. She was giving him a look that seemed to suggest he was overwhelming Alex.

"I-I was in a coma???" stammered Alex.

"Only for a little while, dear," Aunt Dena assured, placing a gentle hand against her cheek. "Just over 24 hours. The doctor was confident you'd make a full recovery."

Alex ran a hand through her messy brown hair, dyed purple at the tips. "Wait... You didn't tell Mom, did you?"

"No, honey. I wasn't planning to until I was certain how serious it was."

Alex breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. I wouldn't want her to worry."

"However, I _will_ have to call her today and fill her in. Just make sure you call her the moment you're discharged, Alex. Understand? Otherwise, she'll get to fretting, and you know that isn't good for her."

Alex nodded. Aunt Dena affectionately tucked a strand of purple-tipped hair behind Alex's ear before motioning for Liam.

"Come on, Liam. School."

"Aww... Can't I stay here with Alex?"

"No. Besides, the doctor said he wanted to run some more tests when she was awake, and you'll only be in the way." Aunt Dena placed a hand on Alex's head. "Call me if you need anything, dear."

"Okay."

Aunt Dena kissed her forehead. "I'll let the doctor know you're awake. Come on, Liam."

"See ya, Alex! Hope you feel better soon!"

Alex smiled faintly as they left. "Yeah," she muttered, for she had one hell of a headache. "Me, too."

She listened as her aunt and cousin's footsteps receded down the hallway, smirking as she heard Aunt Dena commenting on Liam's need for a haircut.

"Seriously, Liam. You look like a sheep dog."

"I like sheep dogs."

"How can you even see anything with that hair?"

"What's there to see?"

Alex shook her head, chuckling to herself. On the TV above her bed, the game show had ended and a news broadcast was airing. The mention of "An accident at the Starlight Gaming Convention," and "Centurion Technologies" caught her attention.

"The city experienced a total outage of power after an accident at the Starlight Gaming Convention yesterday. Witnesses say that a malfunction at the Centurion Technologies virtual reality exhibit created a total loss of power across a bulk of the city. The malfunction occurred during a demonstration of Centurion's new experimental REMgage immersive reality system. A young woman, whose identity is being withheld by authorities, was rushed to the hospital after the malfunction took place. Her condition is said to be stable at this time. Power was restored to most of the city, with a few exceptions, early this morning. Representatives from Centurion Technologies have declined any comments on the matter, at this time. In other news..."

The news anchor moved on to a different report. Alex was thankful that they withheld her name. It would be horrible if her mother learned about what had happened to her that way. At least now Aunt Dena could break it to her gently and assure her that Alex was fine. However, Alex thought the incident deserved a little more than the short, forgettable blurb that the news gave it. She could've been gravely injured! In fact, she was in a way. After all, she'd just awakened from... What had Aunt Dena called it? A 24-hour coma? She was lucky she didn't die!

The news made it seem like a small malfunction, painted her injuries as minor without even stating the extent of the injury incurred, and made it seem like the greatest inconvenience was the power outage. Likely, Edgar Roman of Centurion Technologies paid someone big money to keep the full extent of the accident hush-hush.

Alex sighed and leaned back against the pillows. _Serves me right for agreeing to try something so experimental like that. I'm not even a gamer anymore. Seriously, what was I thinking?_

And furthermore, what exactly _had_ happened?

Towards the end, things started happening that she had no control over, something completely contradictory to the way Mr. Roman said the game worked. And there was that mysterious voice, one that addressed both Mr. Roman and herself. Had someone, perhaps, hacked the machine?

Alex was not left alone with these thoughts for long when the doctor arrived with a nurse in tow.

"Miss Parker?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm Dr. Gallagher," he said, shaking her hand. "It's good to see you awake. If you're feeling well enough, we'd like to run some scans."

"Scans?" she asked.

"Yes. An MRI of your brain."

Alex chewed her lip nervously.

"It's just standard procedure, Miss Parker," he assured. "Let's try not to worry about anything until we know there's something to worry about. The fact that you're awake and talking right now leads me to believe you're going to be just fine. All the same, precautions must be taken."

"O-Oh. Um, all right. Sure."

Alex underwent a series of MRIs as well as blood work, all of which took the better portion of the day, before she was returned to her room.

"The doctor will be reviewing your tests," said the nurse. "But if all looks well, we should be cleared to discharge you tomorrow morning."

Alex dozed in and out of sleep for most of the afternoon, her only complaint fatigue and a bad migraine, the latter for which she was given over-the-counter painkillers which seemed to hold her headaches at bay for no more than a couple hours. When the doctor returned later that evening, he had good news to share.

"There seems to be no significant trauma. However, that EMP pulse seems to have rattled your head a good deal. Possibly given you a mild concussion. You'll want to take it easy for the next few days. No extraneous exercise."

"Just a concussion?" asked Alex, somewhat surprised. "But... I was in a coma!"

"Yes. Very briefly," said the doctor. "I believe, Miss Parker, that you suffered quite the nasty shock to your nervous system. But there's been no lasting damage as far as I can tell. Nevertheless, I'd like to keep you here one more night for observation just to be certain."

Alex nodded numbly. It wasn't that she was unhappy to be medically cleared. But it just seemed somehow... miraculous. Perhaps reading her thoughts, Dr. Gallagher placed a hand on her shoulder and gazed at her with a serious expression.

"You're very lucky, Miss Parker. It could have been a lot worse. And between you and me..." He lowered his voice. "I would seriously consider filing a lawsuit against Centurion Technologies. They put you at great personal risk. You may have only come away with a concussion, but in my expert medical opinion, it was a close call."

Alex didn't know what to say. She was feeling a little overwhelmed, and her headache was returning full force.

"Thanks, Doctor. I'll... I'll think about it."

Dr. Gallagher gave her a sympathetic nod and, with a reminder that she press the call button for the nurse if she needed anything at all, he took leave of her to see to his other patients.

***

The next morning came and the nurses were preparing Alex's discharge papers. She had just finished her breakfast and was looking forward to going home soon, if only to get a decent-tasting meal. The hospital food didn't sit well in her stomach. She was just brushing her hair when a visitor appeared in the doorway. But it was not Aunt Dena or Liam. To her surprise and incredible dismay, it was Edgar Roman of Centurion Technologies, himself, dressed sharply and with a bouquet of flowers, no less!

"Good morning, Miss Parker," he greeted with a wide, toothy smile. "I'm so happy to see that you're up and about. I heard you were going to be discharged today, so I just had to see you before you left."

Alex watched apprehensively as he entered the room and closed the door behind him. She wasn't sure she liked the implication of that. Trying not to show just how uncomfortable she felt around him, she maintained a neutral expression as he set the flowers on her bedside table and took a seat.

"I'm sure I'm the _last_ person you want to see right now, but I was wondering if we could talk for a few minutes."

This man had a perfect smile, likely because he had the money to maintain it. His thick-rimmed glasses sat perched on the edge of his nose as he gazed down at her as though he were a benevolent father speaking to a wayward child.

"That's all right, Mr. Roman," said Alex, her voice surprisingly steady. "I actually wanted to talk to you, too."

"You do?" said Mr. Roman, his eyebrows lifting in surprise. "Well... Uh... That's wonderful. Excellent. I'm glad we can have this moment to talk."

Alex could see that he was caught off guard by her words. He certainly wasn't anticipating that she'd actually _want_ to talk to him. And that, it seemed, was a cause for nervousness.

_Good,_ thought Alex. _Let him be nervous. He should be after what he put me through._

But, ever the professional, Edgar regained his smile and plunged on. "Look, I wanted to take this moment to sincerely apologize for what happened to you. I'm sorry that power surge threw the system for a loop and knocked you unconscious. I suppose you just can't anticipate when something like that is going to happen, huh? I guess the power grid of the convention center just didn't have the necessary power that the REMgage requires."

Was this man serious? Was he really refusing to take responsibility and blaming it entirely on others rather than admitting that his machine was simply not safe? A real humanitarian, this one. But Alex wasn't going to call him out on it. She had something more important to address than arguing with him over who was responsible.

"Mr. Roman... With all due respect, I don't think that's what happened." She leaned towards him, her big brown eyes studying him in a way that he found unsettling. "Mr. Roman... Did you see or hear anything that was happening to me while I was in there? Because everything that was happening... it was only me up to a point. Near the end, things started occurring spontaneously on their own, beyond my control. And... well, there was this... this voice. And it referenced you by name."

Edgar Roman's smile slipped away, replaced by an expression which looked mildly perturbed.

Alex tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Apparently, a nervous tick. "Mr. Roman," she said. "I think your machine was hacked."

Edgar was silent a moment, but slowly, his smile returned and he shook his head. "No... That's quite impossible, Miss Parker. The REMgage's system is absolutely impenetrable. It has more fail safes and protection protocols than any computer system in the world today. It's the most advanced piece of technology around! Basically, if someone tried to hack into that system, we would know about it. And as for a voice, it must've been a figment of your imagination because no one heard any voice."

Alex couldn't believe how dismissive he was being! He was outright accusing her of having imagined the entire thing. "I _didn't_ imagine it!" she insisted, but he was equally insistent.

"There was no voice, Miss Parker. I'm sorry to say that, but it's true." He was prepared to deny any and all wrongdoing or faults in his machine's design or programming. It seemed nothing Alex could say would change his mind. "Now then. Let's talk, business, shall we?"

"With all due respect, Mr. Roman," said Alex, glaring at him, "I think our business here is over."

She kicked off her blankets and rose from the bed, completely forgetting that she was still in a hospital gown and, aside from her underpants, quite bottomless. She opened the door and thrust a finger into the hallway.

"Thanks for the flowers, Mr. Roman. Now please get out." She was so upset she was shaking. How dare he come in here without an appropriate apology! Not only did he blame the convention center instead of taking responsibility for his own machine, but he'd also accused her of imagining things! And then he expected her to 'talk business?' To hell with that!

Edgar hurried up from his seat and went to her. "Whoa, whoa... Hold on a moment, Miss Parker."

Alex noticed the look of panic on his face. She recalled what Dr. Gallagher had told her yesterday about considering legal action against Centurion Technologies. It seemed Edgar Roman was afraid that she might do just that.

"Look," he said. "Perhaps you're right. Maybe there was something that we overlooked. Something that slipped past our radar. Whatever the cause of the whole incident..." Mr. Roman reached into his suit jacket and took a checkbook and a pen out of an interior pocket. "I would like it if we could come to some sort of an arrangement; one where we could put this whole incident behind us and move on with our lives." He opened the checkbook and clicked the pen. "I'm prepared to offer you a fair amount to simply never mention it to anyone."

Was he serious?

Alex lifted an eyebrow. "Dude... it was on the news. People already know about it. If you're concerned that I'll give explicit details, don't worry about it. I assure you, I never want to think about the incident again. Now, if you _really_ want to apologize, you can pay my hospital bill. _And_ , more importantly, either destroy that damn machine or take it back to the drawing board until you're absolutely certain it's safe for public consumption. All right?"

She took him by the arm and steered him out the door. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get changed. They're discharging me soon. Have a good day, all right?" With that, she closed the door, leaving him in the hallway. Alone once more, Alex leaned against the door and took a slow, deep breath.

_Insufferable prick._

Edgar gaped at the closed door, which she'd practically slammed in his face. It appeared she was not only kicking him out of her room, but out of her life entirely. He took a slow, deep breath through his nose and tucked the checkbook back into his pocket. As he walked down the hallway, he brought his wristwatch to his mouth.

"It's Roman. Yeah, looks like we won't have to worry about the girl. Right. Whatever that glitch was... forget it! I think we're ready for beta testers."

***

Alex was discharged shortly after the unwanted visit by Edgar Roman. Due to her concussion, she was advised to avoid extraneous exercise and to not drive a car for at least a few days. Well, the latter was easy enough. She didn't own a car. She only ever borrowed her aunt's car when assigned with carting Liam around to some entertainment or to get to and from work. But she could take public transit for that.

Alex took the bus from the hospital, en route to Scottstown University campus. While riding, the bouncing of the bus made her unusually queasy and her head began to pound. But she'd been given medicine for the migraine just prior to discharge and could take nothing more for at least another couple of hours. So she rested her head against the window and closed her eyes, hoping it would soon pass.

When Alex opened her eyes some indeterminate amount of time later, she let out a frightened cry. She was standing in front of the door to her apartment with no memory of having gotten there, with no memory, in fact, of even getting off the bus.

Suddenly feeling sick, she fumbled with the key and opened the door, ran to the bathroom and promptly threw up. Once she finished expelling the contents of her stomach, she collapsed, fully clothed, onto her bed.

***

Scottstown was a medium-sized college town not far from a bustling downtown area referred to as North Lake City, so named for the fact that it was on the coast of a large lake; one of the Greats, in fact. This city played haven to a veritable melting pot of different cultures and ethnicities. Thus, many people called North Lake home. However, after the incident at the Starlight Gaming Convention, North Lake City was now the recipient of a few unexpected residents.

Somewhere far out on the lake was an object that hadn't been there before. Over the course of the last 24 hours, a large metallic dome-like structure had appeared in the middle of the water. A helicopter pilot had reported seeing this strange structure, but further investigation proved fruitless, and this peculiar hallucination was attributed to mere tiredness and the pilot was given a week's vacation to rest up.

However, it was no hallucination. The reason no one else had the opportunity to observe it was simply due to the fact that it had become invisible to the naked eye, owing in part to holographic image reflectors, allowing it to camouflage itself by creating projections of the surrounding body of water. From this massive dome in the lake, several small orb-like drones with red lens eyes flew out into the night. Meanwhile, somewhere inside that dome, someone viewed the live surveillance video provided by the fleet of drones that were unleashed into the city.

"Finally... After so long, I'm finally home. Oh, how nice it will be to settle in once more. I suppose now that I'm here, it's time I track down a few lost items."

The viewer swiped his fingers across the holographic video displays, and the words 'CHAOS TRACKER' appeared on the hovering view-screen.

"Oh yes... you're here, aren't you? All seven of you came along for the ride. I'll find you again... Count on it. But in the meantime, perhaps it's time I look up an old friend."


	4. Chapter 4

Somewhere Alex's phone buzzed. Her hand fumbled clumsily in the dark until her fingers brushed her lamp, which sprung to life at her touch, bathing her bedroom in a soft warm glow. She had fallen asleep, and in a pretty deep one, too, from the looks of it. Her hair was plastered against one cheek and her Sonic plushie, which she never remembered grabbing, was matted with drool.

"Oh man... Sorry, Sonic," she mumbled, setting him aside and reminding herself to put him in the washing machine later. She found her phone buried beneath the pillows and swiped the screen. She had two missed calls from her aunt and, just now, a text.

_CALL YOUR MOTHER!_

Alex ran a hand down her face and groaned. She quickly texted back.

_Calling now._

She scrolled through her contacts list until she found 'Mom,' and hit the call button. The phone rang twice before her mother answered.

"Hey, Mom," Alex greeted, trying to sound more awake than she felt. "No, no, I'm fine," she said quickly. "Really. I promise. Doctor did scans and everything. He said there's nothing to worry about. Just a mild concussion."

Alex rose to her feet and slowly paced the room, running a hand through her hair "Yeah, exactly. So there's no need to worry, okay? More importantly, Mom... How are _you_ doing?"

Alex chatted for about 10 minutes before her mom started to get tired.

"It's okay, Mom. You just get some rest, all right? I'll visit this weekend."

Just as Alex ended the call, another text message came through. This one from Diane Sully, her swim coach.

_You missed practice again. Big swim meet next week! Don't forget! Hope you're practicing!_

With a groan, Alex dropped her phone on the bed and ran to the bathroom to don her bathing suit. She couldn't believe she'd missed another practice. First, it was because she agreed to fill in for a sick coworker for a late weekday shift that conflicted with practice, but it was too late to get out of. Coach Sully had let her off the hook for that one. And no doubt if she explained the reason for missing the second one, her coach would be more than understanding. Still, missing two practices this early in the year was a recipe for failure. If she wasn't in good shape by the meet, she could get kicked off the team and there'd go her scholarship.

Alex quickly changed and grabbed her towel. This time of night, she'd have the community pool all to herself. And the nights had been unusually warm for September. It was the perfect time to practice. She slipped on her sandals and grabbed her keys and headed out, locking the door behind her. On the bed, her phone screen lit up, signaling an incoming call, but she wasn't there to answer. The caller left a voicemail.

"Miss Parker... It's Dr. Gallagher. I was taking a second look at your MRI scans and saw something peculiar I hadn't noticed before. I don't necessarily think it's a cause for alarm, but erring on the side of caution, I'd like it if you could come in and retake some scans. Please call me back when you get this message."

***

As Alex went for a late-night swim in the public pool, something extraordinary was happening in Scottstown. High in the night sky, there was a bright white flash. Engaged as she was in swimming laps, Alex never saw it. If she had, it might have looked very familiar to her, given her recent experience inside the REMgage. The bright flash deposited something through the fabric of space. A figure plummeted through the night sky, limp and unconscious. As he fell, the air whipping against his face awoke him. A pair of large green eyes fluttered open.

"Wh-what? That white light... where did it... huh?" His eyes went wide as he realized the situation he was in. "WHOOOAAAA SHIIIIIIIII--"

Alex had just finished her sixth lap and she was exhausted. Only now was she regretting having gone against the doctor's advice to avoid extraneous activity. She was taking respite at the side of the pool when she was jolted by a sudden large splash.

"What the--?!"

She spun around. The turbulent waters proved someone – or something – had either leapt or fallen into the pool from a great height. But who, besides her, would go swimming this time of night? Worried it might be one of the ill-reputed young men from the frat house down the street looking for 'a good time,' Alex inched towards the stairs, her eyes never leaving the point of impact.

The water was beginning to settle, but for a series of bubbles rising to the surface. Alex hesitated. Whoever was down there, they'd been submerged for an awfully long time and the bubbles were starting to slow.

"Shit," Alex muttered through her teeth and dove into the deep end.

With only the moonlight to guide her, it was difficult to see. She had to go by feel alone. There was definitely someone down here, though. Her fingers brushed against something soft. Her hand closed around an arm. Alarmed, she quickly wrapped her arms around the person's waist. They were rather small. Was it a child?

_Oh my God! Oh my God!_

With the child in tow, Alex pressed her feet against the floor of the pool and pushed off, rocketing to the surface. To her relief, as they emerged, she heard the kid coughing and gasping. Thank God! They hadn't drowned. She pulled the figure to the stairs and hauled him out of the pool. Panting heavily, she grabbed her towel and wrapped it around the figure, trying to warm him.

"It's okay," she reassured him. "You're all right. Just... sit tight. There's a light around here somewhere. I've just got to find the switch."

She went to the fence that enclosed the pool and found the switch. At her command, the LED rope lights which spiraled along the fence lit up the pool area, bathing it in a soothing white light. She returned to the figure, huddled beneath her towel.

"Hey, are you okay? What happened?"

The first thing she noticed before the figure even spoke was his shoes; very familiar-looking red shoes with a white strap over the middle.

_No way... They make those now?!_

After a couple more coughs and sputters, he spoke. "Yeah... Yeah I'm okay. That was really close. Thanks a lot."

Funny... he didn't sound like a kid. More like a teenager. Alex took a step closer. He lowered the towel and she stopped in her tracks. What she saw was downright impossible -- big green eyes and a cute black nose set in a muzzle of peach fur, small pointed ears and a plethora of blue fur and quills. He gazed up at her with an expression of shock, but it was Alex who suffered the bigger shock. She opened her mouth. Nothing came out. She tried again. Merely a squeak. Slowly she backed away from him, bringing a hand to her head.

"Th-This... This isn't real. Am I here? No, I can't be. Am I still in it? I'm still in it! I must be!" She glanced around, willing her surroundings to change, trying to test her environment. But everything stayed the same, including the impossible figure sitting by the pool.

"M-Mr. Roman?" she called.

No answer, except from the creature sitting at her feet.

"Mr. Who?"

"Oh man... Maybe it's all a dream. I never truly left. I'm still in the REMgage."

The blue anthropomorphic hedgehog merely sat there, blinking his wide green eyes, gaping at her. Whatever was going on with this girl, it wasn't natural. She seemed to think she was dreaming... or being pranked by someone named Mr. Roman? He couldn't be certain exactly what the girl was thinking, but it was all too obvious that it was his presence, his appearance, that was spooking her.

He shook his head and lifted up his gloved hands. "Listen, you seem spooked. Trust me, I am too! I wasn't expecting to end up in a world filled with more people like... _him_. _He_ musta done this. Finally got that crazy machine to work somehow. This must be the world where _he_ comes from." Sonic, or the creature that resembled Sonic, rose to his feet and took a few steps away from her. "I appreciate your help. But I've gotta run. Maybe find out how I got here... and where _here_ is. So, again, thanks for getting me out of the pool. But I gotta go."

The moment he suggested the idea of taking off, it was like a switch was flipped and Alex came to her senses.

"W-WAIT!"

Alex took a trembling step towards him, only to fall to her knees in front of him. "P-Please don't leave! I-I don't know if you're r-real or a hallucination. But in either instance, I've got good reasons for you not to run away. If you're a hallucination, I-I need you. You're a symptom, the proof I need to punish a greedy person with a dangerous machine who's gonna hurt more people if I don't put him out of business."

If it wasn't the sight of her tears that stopped him, it was certainly what she said next. "And if you're real... then something much bigger is going on here and it's _you_ who's gonna need _my_ help, Sonic."

Sonic stopped in his tracks, turning around to face her once more. "Wait... you know me? How do you know who I am?"

"Yeah... Um, sorry to drop _that_ bombshell on you. I can explain, but not out here."

"What's wrong with out here?"

"Well..."

"Man, I just don't know what happened," he said as he began to pace. "I was just going about my way like any other day when some big white shockwave engulfed everything and knocked me out. Next thing I know, I'm falling out of the sky and into a pool of water."

Alex's eyes went wide in realization. "Big white... shockwave?"

But much like his speed, Sonic was way ahead of her in the conversation, which was starting to feel incredibly one-sided.

"Thank you again for the rescue, by the way. But..." He shook his head, his large green eyes narrowing in a scrutinizing fashion. "I don't really know what's happening. Where am I? Are you... like Robotnik? What are they called? Uh... A human! That's it! You're a human, right?"

"Ew! I am _not_ like Robotnik! Just because we're the same species..." she mumbled. "Look, if someone sees me out here arguing with myself, or worse, arguing with an anthropomorphic hedgehog, I'm... _we're_ screwed. Right now, I need you to trust me, okay?"

Slowly, Alex rose to her feet, still noticeably trembling. "Please... Will you come with me? My apartment is just around the corner. I'll explain everything there. We just need to get away from prying eyes and ears. Please, Sonic?"

Sonic studied the girl. She seemed like she was desperate, as though she were in trouble. Although he didn't have all the information, something was happening here, and this girl needed help. And it was his duty to help those in need. After all, that's what heroes were for.

"Well, you _did_ rescue me. And I don't know where I am or what it is I need to do. So yeah, I'll go with you. Lead the way."

***

Ten minutes later, Alex stood in the kitchen wearing a robe and a pair of denim shorts over her swimsuit. Sonic sat on the armchair in the adjoining living room, huddled up with a warm towel fresh out of the drier. Aside from the furniture, a small flatscreen TV, a desktop computer and a couple bookshelves, the apartment was rather bare. No decorations adorned the walls. This place... was not much to look at.

Alex stood at the stove, her hands trembling as she put the kettle on. "I-I'm making tea. W-Would you like some? Coffee? Hot cocoa?"

"No thanks. I thought we were gonna talk."

"We are," Alex replied as she reached for a mug in the cupboard. "But if I'm gonna do that, I'm gonna need a clear head. I need something that'll relax—" Her hands were shaking so badly she dropped the mug. "Shit!"

But it never hit the floor. In the blink of an eye Sonic was at her side, the mug in his hand.

"Whoa... be careful. This could made quite the mess." He smiled as he handed the mug to Alex.

"Thanks," she said, taking it back from him with slightly steadier hands. "It was my Dad's favorite. I'd be super upset if it broke." Smiling at him, she held out her free hand to shake his. "First off, my name is Alex Parker."

Sonic's gloved hand took hers and shook it as he instinctively replied. "I'm Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog. Though... I guess you already know that somehow."

"It's nice to meet you," she said. "And you're gonna want to sit down for what I have to tell you next."

Once Alex had poured herself some tea and they were seated across from one another, she took a deep breath and began.

"It's gonna take some time for me to conclude whether you're Sonic the Hedgehog or Sonic the Hallucination..."

She let out a nervous laugh, only to quickly drown it with tea, shaking her head. Her trembling had returned.

"But in the interest of being polite, I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you're really here right now, sitting in my living room. And, of course, it would be way past cool if you _are_ real, obviously. And..." She trailed off with a blush and averted her gaze, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear self-consciously.

Sonic grinned. That was a cute little tick she had, even if her hair was just barely long enough to tucked. He admired the purple color at the tips. And her phrasing of 'way past cool,' was not lost on him. _He_ sometimes said that. What were the odds?

"Sorry," she apologized. "I'm rambling. Anyway, we'll start with the basics. You wanted to know how I knew your name. This is probably gonna be hard for you to comprehend, but the fact of the matter is, here on my world..." She hesitated, as though fearing his reaction, then plunged on. "Well, you're a pop culture icon, Sonic."

Sonic blinked at her in disbelief. "A what? An icon? You mean I'm famous? But I've never even been here before!"

Alex rubbed the back of her neck. "Yeeaaah... I can't explain that. Wish I could. All I know is that almost 30 years ago, a video game company called Sega 'created' you to be the mascot and flagship character of their, at the time, up-and-coming video game console. And from there spawned cartoons, comic books, and, recently, even a movie. C'mere. I'll show you."

Sonic hopped down from his chair, shaking his head. "That's really fascinating, but I think I need some facts checked. There's no way that anything involving me could have happened 30 years ago. I'm only 16. And do I just look like some fictional character to you?"

"I can't explain it either," said Alex. "But it's the truth." She led him to another room in her apartment. Her hand hovered over the doorknob. "Um, forgive the mess," she said, "And also, uh, please ignore anything embarrassing, okay?"

She opened the door. In all ways, her bedroom was a typical girl's bedroom, though incredibly untidy. Dirty laundry littered the floor. In fact, Sonic was pretty sure he spotted a couple items that fit under the 'ignore anything embarrassing' category. But two major things stood out, one of which was a framed poster on the wall of himself and Tails in front of a giant number two with a frightening Robotnik face looming in the background.

"What?! What is this? How is that possible?"

"That's vintage," Alex told him proudly. "Used to be my dad's. They made that poster before I was even born. Isn't that wild?"

The other thing he spotted was something she attempted to hide from him, likely due to embarrassment. A stuffed Sonic doll which she quickly swiped from her bed and tucked behind her back when she thought he wasn't looking. But his eyes were as quick as his feet, and she couldn't successfully hide it.

In the blink of an eye, Sonic zipped up behind her. "Whaaaat? This... This is a doll. It's a doll of me! You have a doll of me!?"

Alex blushed. "I've had it since I was a baby," she mumbled embarrassedly. "Also used to be Dad's. He was a big fan. Sorry if it freaks you out. I don't, you know, do anything weird with it or anything." Man, this was embarrassing. She didn't dare tell him that even at 18 years old she still slept with it every night.

Sonic was simultaneously smiling while looking incredibly confused. "This is kind of blowing my mind right now. Somehow, I was famous on this world before I was even born... and... they make stuff with my face on it. This is insane!"

"Yeah... Yeah, it is," said Alex. "All of this is insane."

She plopped down onto the edge of her bed and rested her elbows on her knees, placing her face in her hands.

"To the people of Earth, you're not real," came her muffled voice. "You're just a fictional character. If you think _your_ mind is blown... Well, you're not alone. There's a reason I thought I was hallucinating. In fact, I'm still not so sure that isn't the case. But if you _aren't_ a hallucination..."

She trailed off and lifted her face from her hands. She looked exhausted and, strangely, like she was in pain. Sonic's bewildered smile began to wane as he was starting to see that the conversation was taking a more serious turn.

"I have a theory on what might have happened." She took a deep breath. "You see, two days ago something happened to me. Something big. And I think... Well, I think it's possible that it might be connected to how you got here."

She proceeded to regale him with the incident at Starlight Gaming Convention, of Edgar Roman and the REMgage's malfunction – or, in her personal theory, hacking – resulting in a bright white light, an EMP pulse that took down the city's entire power grid, and her subsequent visit to the hospital.

"I don't know who was speaking to me in there," she said, her head lowered and her hands clasped tightly between her knees. "It wasn't anything I was thinking up. Once it got to that point, I lost complete control over the simulation. It was like someone else took over. But there is one thing I remember." She lifted her gaze to him. "That voice... it distinctly said the words 'Chaos Control.'"

Sonic's eyes narrowed. "I think I know just who's in charge of this wild scheme. I can't believe he finally pulled it off." His expression was serious as his gaze met hers. "I hate to break it to you, but I don't think that I'm the only one that's arrived on your world, Alex. I think my enemy is responsible for all this. I think there's a good chance that Robotnik is on Earth too!"

"I was afraid you were gonna say that. Freakin' fantastic."

Alex collapsed backwards onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. She took a moment to close her eyes and breathe deeply.

"Ngh... My head hurts so bad right now. I don't know if this is real, but pretending just for a moment it is... How is it even possible? How can someone exist for real in one world while simultaneously existing as a fictional character in another? That would almost imply that someone from my world knew about you. They would've had to travel to your world or..." She opened her eyes and gazed up at him. "Wait... Earlier, did you say Robotnik is _from here_? As in _Earth?_ So, he wasn't always a part of your world? If that's the case, maybe that's the connection! But there's still a lot of unanswered questions. Like the time gap and... well, like, a lot more!"

"Well, yeah. I mean, this _is_ Earth, right? Robotnik came to my world from Earth, originally. Like a few years back. He was always looking for a way to get back to Earth. And now... I think he figured it out. And if he used Chaos Control, then no doubt he used the Chaos Emeralds to do it. Robotnik finally figured out how to use them. Robotnik's here, the Chaos Emeralds are here... Man, I don't know all the details, but I'm sure now that Robotnik's here, he's planning something wicked."

Alex swallowed nervously. _That_ she certainly didn't doubt.

Sonic glanced towards the door, looking fidgety. "I gotta find him and stop him before he pulls something!"

Alex leapt up from her bed. "WAIT!" she cried. "DON'T LEAVE!"

Once more, Sonic stopped in his tracks and turned to face his host. The single lift of his eyebrow, made Alex blush. Embarrassed over her outburst, she lowered her gaze.

"It's... it's just... I mean, even though you're _known_ here, you're also considered fictional; make believe. In other words, as far as the people of Earth are concerned... you're not real. Given those facts, can't you see why it would be careless of you to take off with reckless abandon? If you're seen, people will panic. There'll be mass hysteria! They'll call in the military! Then you won't just have Robotnik to contend with; you'll have the United States government, and you may even become an international incident. They'll want to capture you and... I mean, jeez, Sonic! Haven't you ever seen, like, _any_ movie?"

Sonic furrowed his brow. That _did_ sound pretty tricky. Tangling with Robotnik was hard enough. Did he really want to add more enemies to that list?

"Look," said Alex. "You wanna get home, right? And, if it's not too presumptuous to assume, you wanna get Robotnik out of here, too, right? I mean, _you_ may be able to go toe-to-toe with him, but the people of Earth certainly couldn't. I think I have an inkling of how to get you home, and it involves Edgar Roman and his REMgage."

Sonic's ear twitched and he gained a thoughtful expression. This girl had it more figured out then he did, that was for sure. And if he needed this REMgage thing as well as the Chaos Emeralds to get home...

"Maybe it's conceited and arrogant of me, but I think you need me, Sonic. And I..." Alex lowered her gaze. "I need you, too. I need to know this is real. I need to know this isn't just some hallucination. And if you leave now, then I'll... I'll never know." She gazed at him once more with tears in her eyes. "Just please..."

She took a step towards him only to stop in her tracks. With a cry, she brought a hand to her forehead as though in pain. For a moment, she almost seemed to flicker. Then, she collapsed back onto the bed, curling onto her side.

"Whoa! Alex!" Sonic was back to the girl in a flash. "Hey! Are you okay? What's happening to you?"

Alex lay curled up on the bed, eyes closed, wincing in pain. The strange flickering phenomenon had already passed, but her discomfort and the sense that something was definitely wrong with her remained.

Sonic frowned. It was such a peculiar sight. For the briefest of moments, Alex had literally gone transparent. And here, Sonic thought _he_ was having a rough time. He hopped up onto her bed, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, say something, would ya?"

But the only thing she managed to get out was, "D-Don't... Don't leave yet..."

Her eyes were closed. She seemed to be fading, not so much physically this time as mentally. Perhaps it was a side effect of what happened to her in the REMgage, the machine that she believed was, in part, responsible for his being here, and possibly, as she had theorized, one of the keys to getting him back home.

But what about _her_? Was _she_ okay? If she'd been exposed to chaos energy, could something be wrong with her? Sonic couldn't know for sure. He wasn't the brainy type of guy. That was more Tails' domain, someone he found himself very much wishing was here right about now.

"P-Please," Alex begged faintly. "D-Don't leave me... Stay just a little longer... Please..." It was the last thing she said before she fell asleep. At least, he hoped she was asleep. The rise and fall of her chest as she breathed seemed normal enough, but one thing was clear – this girl was in trouble and she needed help. And it might not be the type of help the doctors on Earth could give.

Seized by a compulsion, Sonic moved his fingers to the purple-tipped strands of hair and gently brushed them out of her face.

"Okay... I'll stay. Who am I to say no to someone in need?"

Sonic smiled and trailed his fingers through Alex's hair for a little while longer, not entirely sure why he was doing it. Perhaps he just wanted to comfort her because she seemed so sweet and helpful, but scared. Maybe it was the way she cuddled that Sonic doll as she slept, like the whole world might come apart if she didn't have its protection.

As relaxing and cathartic as it was to pet her, Sonic was beginning to get bored and antsy. He pulled a blanket over her before hopping off the bed to search for something to occupy his time. Once more, the poster on the wall caught his attention. For a moment, Sonic simply gazed at he and Tails as they stood in front of a giant number 2 while a bald man with black voids for eyes and large red facial hair loomed over them. For a long time, Sonic stared at that looming face.

"Yeah... that's not at all creepy."

Shaking his head, he turned away from it.

_Well, time to snoop around a bit._

Sonic did his best to ignore the... 'unmentionables'... that lay around the room. Alex sure had a lot of clothes. But that wasn't what interested him. Noticing that her closet door was slightly ajar, and hoping she wouldn't be too cross with him, he opened the door the rest of the way and immediately spotted a box.

"What's this?"

The box was labeled in black marker with the words, _Dad's Sonic Shit._

Sonic snorted at the particular phrasing as he pulled out the box and set it on the floor. He quickly glanced back at Alex, making sure she was still asleep, before plopping onto the floor and opening the box. After all, his name was on it. He just couldn't resist!

As Alex snored away, Sonic proceeded with his mischief. But what else could be expected of him? As per Alex's warnings, he couldn't just run off and get himself seen, but staying cooped up in her apartment with nothing to do was boring. He'd simply have to find his own entertainment. And find it, he did, inside the old box. There was a plethora of stuff inside. If the poster and the doll hadn't convinced him that what Alex said was true, here was irrefutable proof.

There had to be at least 200 comic books with his name on it, published by a company called Archie. There were DVDs entitled SATAM, AOSTH, Sonic Underground, and Sonic X, and here was an old, dusty machine with the words Sega Genesis printed across it along with several cartridges, which were clearly meant to be inserted into the top of the machine. Many had his face on them. These must be the video games Alex had been talking about. But what he found at the very bottom was what truly brought a grin to his face; a photograph of a much younger Alex and a man whom he could only assume was her dad.

Unlike Alex, Mr. Parker had blonde hair, blue eyes and glasses. But Sonic could see the family resemblance in their faces, and especially their smiles, even though, Alex, who had to be six years old in this picture, was missing her two front teeth. In one hand she held the same Sonic doll that was currently sharing a bed with her, and the other was throwing up a victory V. Her father looked very much the loveable dork with his glasses, messy hair and Sonic the Hedgehog T-shirt whilst giving a thumbs-up. Sonic smiled. They looked like they were having so much fun.

There was one more item at the bottom of the box below the photo. It was an old crinkled picture drawn in crayon. At the top, Alex had written her name quite sloppily with alternating uppercase and lowercase letters.

ALexAnDra.

Beneath her name were three rather badly drawn figures. One appeared to be Alex, with the label "Me" and an arrow pointing to it. She was holding hands with a badly drawn picture of her father with the label "Daddy." On Alex's other side, also holding her hand, was a badly drawn, but still very much recognizable blue hedgehog labeled, "Sonic." There was even a smiling yellow scribble floating at the top right-hand corner of the picture which looked suspiciously like his sidekick, though the name was spelled "Tales" rather than "Tails." Sonic snorted with laughter. This was likely a picture Alex wouldn't have wanted anyone to see, but was far too precious to throw away.

Once more, Sonic studied the Sega Genesis machine and the little rectangular cartridges. Maybe he could figure out how this thing worked. Silently, he gathered up the box and carried it out of her bedroom, switching off the light and closing the door softly behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember that part with the pool from the first episode of Sonic X? Yeah... I borrowed it.
> 
> Actually, the general gist of this fanfiction is sort of inspired by Sonic X (at least in the sense that Sonic is teleported to a predominantly human world). The anime was a kind of a point of contention back in the day, mostly due to the controversial character of Christopher Thorndyke.
> 
> Personally, I enjoyed the anime at the time and didn't have a huge problem with the character, though I completely understood why others did. Although creating a character through which we, as human beings, could sort of live vicariously and through whose eyes we could see Sonic from a different perspective wasn't entirely un-clever, I don't think they did the best job at making him relatable.
> 
> In some ways, I guess this story is an attempt at improving where Sonic X failed. Though, rest assured, this story is intended to stand alone as something entirely apart from Sonic X and pretty much any other continuity that currently exists. Perhaps, one could argue this fanfiction borrows more from the original games, but simultaneously takes a little inspiration from many Sonic continuities. Anyway, I hope you enjoy! Happy reading!


	5. Chapter 5

The next morning, Alex awoke to the sound of a pre-set alarm. Her first class of the day started in less than a couple hours. Much as she desperately wanted to stay in bed, she'd already missed two days of classes due to her accident and really shouldn't skip.

With a groan, Alex sat up. There was the distinct smell of mildew in the room. Alex was appalled to discover it was her. She was still wearing her bathing suit and a pair of denim shorts from last night and they were still damp. It would appear that a shower was in order.

Groggily, Alex shuffled out of the bedroom and into the bathroom. She undressed and stepped into the shower. As she stood with the hot, steamy water running though her hair she let out a long sigh. What a nice dream she'd had last night. She dreamed Sonic had come to her world, that she'd made friends with him and promised to help him. And the dream ended with her falling asleep and him telling her he'd stay.

_A nice dream, indeed,_ she thought.

It was like meeting an old friend for the first time in a very long time. And, in a way, it was bittersweet. It was the happiest she'd felt since her father passed away. What a shame it couldn't be true. It also had Alex thinking... Perhaps that REMgage thing wouldn't be so bad if Mr. Roman managed to iron out all the bugs. There was potential. It was a dream machine, after all. Wouldn't it be nice to have one? Then she could have dreams about Sonic all the time. And maybe... maybe even bring her dad along for the adventure. If she could dream anything she wanted, surely she could dream her dad back into 'reality,' if only for a little while. The idea had merit.

Alex finished washing and stepped out of the shower. Wrapping and securing a towel around herself, Alex walked barefoot and dripping into the kitchen to prepare breakfast. She was just pouring herself a bowl of cereal when she heard someone shout, "AHH! COME ON! What is the deal with this stupid barrel!!! EEERGH!!!"

Alex spun around with a cry, spilling the entire box of cereal on the kitchen floor. Seated on the living room floor among several stacks of Archie Sonic the Hedgehog comics, Sonic himself was furiously tapping buttons on a Sega Genesis controller while familiar music played. If Alex wasn't mistaken, it sounded like Carnival Night Zone in Sonic 3.

At the sound her scream, Sonic glanced over his shoulder and grinned at her. "Oh! You're awake! Good morning!" He turned back toward the TV, clenching his teeth as he attempted to figure out the trap.

"Y-You're... You're still here! But it... it was a dream!"

Sonic shook his head, not taking his eyes from the TV. "You're still on about that? Hate to break it to you, Alex, but I'm not a hallucination or a dream. Maybe a _dream hunk_ of a hedgehog, but I'm as real as you are. Unless... _you're_ not real and _I'm_ the one who's hallucinating. But somehow I doubt that..." Then, without missing a beat. "DAMN IT, TAILS! Do something useful! Don't just jump when I jump! Go... find a button... or a control panel... or SOMETHING!"

Alex cracked a smile, chewing her lip with a soft giggle and a shake of her head. He was playing the Sega Genesis! Playing his own game! It was too much! It was just too cute! And from the looks of it, he was having trouble with the infamous barrel in Carnival Night Zone. Alex joined him in the living room, quite forgetting she was still in her towel.

"I'm gonna blow your mind, but the trick to that... It's not jumping. You just press down."

Sonic did as she said, and a moment later, he was past it. Sonic blinked in shock. "THAT WAS IT!? I've been stuck at that stupid thing for ages!! How was I supposed to figure out how that trap works? There's no other point in the other games where that's even a thing! How do you figure something like that out!?"

"Oh, I know. Trust me. I had _so_ much trouble with that as a kid. It wasn't until my dad took pity on me and told me how to do it that I learned."

With a deep breath, Sonic calmed himself down. "Thanks," he said, glancing at Alex. He hesitated, staring at her as though he found something amusing.

"What?" she asked. "What is it?"

"Don't humans usually wear more clothes than that?"

"ACK!" Alex exclaimed, suddenly remembering her current state of dress. She leapt back to her feet, clutching her towel tighter around her, cheeks aflame.

"Not that I'm complaining, mind you," he added with a teasing grin.

Alex scrunched her face as though she were trying to look indignant, but she failed to hide her amusement. "So..." she said with narrowed eyes and the ghost of a smirk on her face. "You're flirty Sonic. Like in SatAM and AoStH."

"Sat A-M? A-O-S... what?"

Alex took the DVDs out of her father's box. "The two Sonic cartoons from the '90s," she explained. "They're, like, different continuities, you know? One's your classic slapstick madcap type of cartoon, and the other is a lot darker. In the darker one, you're, like, a part of this rebel group of Freedom Fighters on a world where Robotnik has already taken over. It's got a subtle environmentalist theme, too. The real you isn't too-too much like those versions, but you seem to possess certain aspects of their personalities, which is totally cool, but it also makes me want to grill you with questions to figure out which continuity you're most like, especially since there's also Game Sonic, Sonic X Sonic, Archie Comics Sonic, Sonic Boom Sonic and – recently – movie Sonic," she rambled, holding up a finger for each one as though counting them off.

Sonic tried to listen to what she was saying but was distracted by her towel, which was starting to slip off. More and more of the curve of her chest was being exposed. If she didn't act fast...

"Oh! There's also OVA Sonic, which is..."

She finally noticed the descent of her towel and caught it just in time. Clutching it to her, she blushed.

"Uh... Y-Yeah... I'm gonna stop geeking out now and, um, go get dressed... Yeah, uh, b-be right back."

Sonic watched her flee, embarrassed, from the room. "Heh, heh. She's cute." With a chuckle, he went back to playing the Carnival Night Zone.

Alex returned several minutes later, dressed in a pair of torn black jeans, a white cami and denim jacket. Her brown-purple hair was brushed and dried. She took a seat on the floor beside Sonic.

"Much as I'd like to just sit and play a Sonic game with the dude himself," she said with a soft smile. "We, um, need to talk. Like, in all seriousness. Do you mind?" She nodded towards the Sega Genesis. "Don't worry. Unlike the first two games, this one actually saves your progress. You can always get back to it."

She chewed her lip and averted her gaze. _What am I saying? Am I suggesting he should just stay here with me semi-permanently until he finds a way home? Isn't that rash? Or at the very least kinda selfish?_

But Alex found that she didn't care. She wanted him to stay with her for as long as he could. But she also had a responsibility and a duty – and that was to help him get home.

"Oh," he said. "Yeah, sure. Let's talk."

He switched off the Genesis and the TV before turning to face her, crossing his arms over his chest, his head tilted, ready to listen.

Alex took a deep breath. "So, addressing the elephant in the room – or the Eggman in the room, in this case – Robotnik."

Sonic's expression immediately turned to a dour one. He knew this topic was coming sooner or later. After all, the only reason he never went searching for Robotnik last night was that Alex had practically begged him to stay with her. So now, with this topic on the table, Sonic was all business.

"You said he's here. Probably. You said he was from Earth originally and that he's always wanted to get back. This may sound like a strange question, but... do you think he's dangerous? I mean, to us here on Earth? Because, I mean, if he really _did_ come from Earth and pulled some nasty stuff, I feel like I would've heard about that. Like, it would've at least been in our history books or something. Is it possible that he just doesn't like animals? Uh, that is, anthropomorphic species or... I, um, don't know what you call yourselves. Mobians? Is that a thing? Anyway, you get my meaning. I guess what I'm trying to ask is... Is it necessary for us to confront him or would it be better if you went home and he stayed here? Or will Earth be in, like, mortal peril if he does?"

"Well, that's something of a loaded question, Alex." Sonic sighed and shook his head remorsefully. "If you asked me that same question, like 5 years ago... I would have given you a very different answer."

Alex was curious about that statement, but she would save such questions for later. Right now, they had more serious matters to address. From her seat, cross-legged on the floor, she watched as Sonic paced the room.

"If he'd been able come back to Earth shortly after I met him, then everything would have been fine. But as it is now, there's no telling what that lunatic might do. For all I know, he might see Earth as an easy target and ready himself to conquer it. But we have one thing working in our favor." Sonic paused in his pacing and grinned. "He doesn't know _I'm_ here."

"So what do you intend to do?" she asked. "You must want to go home. Do you intend to recreate Chaos Control and take him back to your world with you? Or do you intend to leave him here?" Alex lowered her gaze, tucking a stray hair behind her ear. "Because, I mean, it's not like I _want_ Robotnik here, especially if he's dangerous. But if this is where he originally came from and he wants to be here, and he's likely made a mess of your world... You're within your rights to leave him here. You understand what I'm saying, don't you?"

She waited with baited breath for his reply, and in that moment, Sonic couldn't tear his gaze away from hers. Had her eyes always been so large, or was she frightened? But furthermore, was she, a citizen of Earth who would no doubt only suffer from Robotnik's presence, really giving him permission to go home and leave his enemy behind for Earth to deal with? She was either very dumb... or very noble, and Sonic didn't think she was dumb.

Finally, Sonic lowered his gaze, contemplative. It was a tricky situation. Of course, he'd be happy to be rid of Robotnik. He'd love to say that his world was safe again and that he and his friends could live peaceful lives. However, if he did that, not _all_ of his friends would be living peaceful lives. When he returned his gaze to Alex, he wore an expression of utmost seriousness.

"Alex, I can't do that to your world. The person Robotnik used to be here on Earth... That guy is gone. All that's left is a power hungry mechanical-maniacal loon who will stop at nothing to get whatever he wants. If he's here, and if the Chaos Emeralds are here, I can't just leave." Sonic shook his head. "As much as I hate to say it... no. He can't stay here. The Eggman's gotta go."

The slightest of relieved smiles appeared on Alex's face, but she quickly banished it, fearing it would be rude to find relief in Sonic's misfortune.

"All right," she said, rising to her feet. "Then we know what we have to do. It sounds like Robotnik... Eggman...? It sounds like he managed to get here with the use of the Chaos Emeralds _and_ the REMgage machine. I can't pretend to know how that worked, but it seems like the REMgage might've been a conduit, or the receiver, and the emeralds a control device. Almost like a remote talking to a television or... or something. Sorry, I'm not too good with analogies. I don't know how to find Chaos Emeralds, but I _do_ know how to get access to the REMgage machine."

Alex took her chin in her hand, and now it was her turn to pace. "I'll have to meet with Edgar Roman. Shouldn't be too hard. After all, he can't refuse to meet with me. Not the girl he sent to the hospital, especially if he wants to avoid a lawsuit. I can go there under the guise of discussing payment of my medical bills. And while there, I can look into the situation with the REMgage. I'll figure out how to do that along the way."

Alex took out her cell phone, swiping aside an unheard voicemail to access her browser. Her thumbs flew across the screen.

"Looks like Edgar Roman lives in North Lake City. That's a 45-minute drive from here. I'll have to borrow my aunt's car. I can take a bus to Aunt Dena's, get her car and drive to North Lake City. It'll be a full-day trip, so I'll have to skip classes today. But this is important." Alex nodded to herself. "Okay. That settles it."

Sonic pumped a fist into the air. "Alright! About time some action was taken!"

Alex smiled reassuringly at him. "Don't worry, Sonic. I'll do everything I can to tackle step one. You can trust me." She grabbed her satchel and slung it over her shoulder. "Let's see, do I have everything? Phone, keys... Oh! The key to Aunt Dena's. She'll be at work today, so I'll have to get into her house to get the car keys. Here it is."

She grabbed a lanyard with a single key off a nearby hook on the wall and looped it over her neck. "Okay. Hold down the fort for me, Sonic. Don't answer the door for anyone, all right? I'll be back as soon as I can."

Sonic gaped incredulously at Alex. And there it was. Arms crossed over his chest, an annoyed glare, and a tapping foot. And she was the recipient of all of it.

"Whattya mean 'hold down the fort?' I'm not gonna stay here while you run out on a possibly dangerous mission."

Sonic's annoyed expression and foot tapping had the opposite effect of what he was intending. Alex took one look and clamped a hand over her mouth, unsuccessfully suppressing her laugh with a snort.

"Dangerous?" she asked, with an amused smile. "Edgar Roman is an asshole, no doubt. But he's hardly dangerous."

"But what if Robotnik turns up while you're looking for this Roman guy?"

"Robotnik?" Alex looked somewhat troubled. "But I don't see what he could possibly want with Mr. Roman or me."

"No way, Alex. I'm coming with you!"

Alex let out a long sigh and ran a hand through her hair. "I was afraid you were gonna say that... I guess there's no way I can convince you to stay behind. But if you're gonna come with me, you need to keep a low profile."

"Low profile? But who's gonna see me? I'm too fast for anyone to see."

"Sonic," said Alex with an exasperated sigh. "They may not see _you_ , but I'm pretty sure the effects of you zooming around at the speed of sound would be... noticeable. And people would look into it. Remember that whole military discovers alien and tries to capture it scenario we talked about? It would be like that, but worse since it's... Well, it's a make-believe video game character. Let's try not to double our amount of enemies. Robotnik's plenty."

She went to the coat closet and began rummaging around. "Liam usually leaves a bag of clothes here for whenever he comes to visit," she muttered to herself. "Kid thinks he lives here. Where is it? Ah! There it is!" Alex pulled out a duffle bag and unzipped it. "I think you and he are roughly the same size. I mean, he's a little taller, but these should still fit."

She tossed Sonic a pair of blue jeans and a red hoodie. "Believe me when I say I'm only doing this for your own good, Sonic, but I'm gonna need you to put those on."

Sonic arched an eyebrow. "You're kidding, right? You want me to wear this stuff?"

He looked down at the clothes and sighed.

_Guess it can't be helped,_ he thought irritably. If this is what it took for him to accompany Alex... Well, he'd just have to suck it up and do it.

He immediately went to work putting on the jeans, though he didn't think to take off his shoes before doing so. Alex watched him struggle and almost offered to help, but then thought better of it. Sonic was proud. He might be offended or embarrassed if she tried to help him. It took him a few tries, but soon the pants were on, but they were noticeably baggy on him. Then he pulled on the hoodie, zipping it up and then trying to flatten his quills so he could pull the hood up over his head.

"If this messes up my do, you're in _big_ trouble, lady."

"Aw, don't worry. I can comb your quills. And worst-case scenario, I've got some pretty heavy-duty hair gel."

"Nuh uh," said Sonic, shaking his head and holding up his hands as though to ward her off. "I don't let one ounce of product touch these quills. My hair style is au naturale."

Alex laughed. "I'm sure it'll be fine. They're nice and springy. Besides," she said, giggling a little. "You look kinda cute."

Even though he knew she was teasing him, Sonic couldn't help but smile a more natural smile. Not so much his usual cocky grin, but one that expressed pleasure at her compliment. He didn't mind Alex thinking he was cute, but he wouldn't dare admit it. Though when she teasingly tugged down on the hood, Sonic quickly changed his tone.

"Don't patronize me, Alex."

"Come on," she said, taking him by the hand and leading him out the door. "Stay close and keep your head down, all right?"

"Ugh," Sonic groaned. "This is embarrassing. Maybe I _should_ stay here."

"That option still remains," said Alex, grinning over her shoulder at him. "But if you wanna come, it's gotta be like this. Don't worry. It's only for a short while. Once we get my aunt's car, you can... uh... strip. The magic of tinted windows and all. Anyway, just hang on a little longer, okay?"

They stepped out of the apartment complex and into the bright light of a sunny September morning.

"All right," said Alex softly under her breath. "Remember, just keep your head down and walk with me. We're gonna wait at the bus stop. We'll board it, ride it for a short trip to my aunt's, and then we can relax once we have the car. And please... no comments about how slow everything is, all right?"

Sonic rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah... Jeez, you _do_ know a lot about me, don't you?"

They arrived at the bus stop. Alex continued to hold Sonic's hand, looking very much like a big sister escorting her little brother.

"Doesn't seem to be many people out and about just yet," she said quietly. "One benefit of living just off the main campus. Plus, it's a Tuesday morning. Everyone's either at work or sleeping in before afternoon classes. With any luck, this'll go without a hitch. Here comes the bus."

Sonic glanced up at her with a smirk. "You nervous? Afraid that I can't keep a low profile? C'mon now. You have no faith in me."

Alex opened her mouth to reply, but whatever she'd been about to say went completely aborted at the sound of hurried footsteps. Out of her peripherals, she saw a young man running towards them. At first, Alex feared it was one of the frat boys from across the street, but a closer look revealed him to be a rather harmless-looking dork.

"YIPE!" Sonic quickly tugged the hood down over his face.

The boy skidded to a halt. He was Alex's age, if slightly older, with messy hair whose color reminded Alex of her favorite hazelnut lattes. He was a good-looking guy, tall, thin, and in decent shape. But certainly not a frat boy, especially if his thick-rimmed glasses and the Spider-Man T-shirt he wore beneath a red and black flannel had anything to say about it. Nevertheless, with the cargo she was towing around, _anyone_ , even this geeky-looking guy (perhaps, _especially_ this geeky-looking guy) was a potential risk to them.

Sonic felt Alex's hand tighten over his. He didn't know if she was aware that she was even doing it. There didn't seem to be anything to fear from the young man, so perhaps she was merely afraid for him. In that moment, Sonic would find, embarrassing or not, he was rather flattered.

"Hooo," the boy panted. "Made it! I thought for sure I was gonna miss it."

Alex offered him a polite smile, but said nothing as the bus rolled to a stop. She gently nudged Sonic ahead of her up the stairs onto the bus and followed, keeping herself at all times between him and the young man behind them. She flashed her college I.D. at the bus driver who nodded, but gave a pointed glance at Sonic.

Alex put her hand on Sonic's head in something of an affectionate manner, but was really making sure the hood was still down low.

"My little brother," she explained with a nervous grin.

The bus driver smiled and nodded them onward. Breathing a sigh of relief, Alex and Sonic moved down the aisle. Thankfully, there were only a few people riding the bus today.

"Take a window seat somewhere near the back," she whispered to him. "I'll flank you."

Sonic was quick to follow her instructions. Alex winced as he sped a little faster than natural down the aisle, but it was early on a Tuesday morning and nobody seemed awake enough to notice... except the guy behind her.

"Wow... quick little kid."

_Please don't look at his shoes,_ Alex prayed silently.

The bus driver cleared his throat and the boy jumped slightly.

"Oh! Sorry." He fumbled with his student I.D. and soon the doors closed. Then, with a squeal of hydraulics, the bus began to move.

Alex took a seat beside Sonic on the aisle side and gave him an exasperated look. The boy, who was either clumsy or simply not used to riding a bus, stumbled down the aisle until he found a seat across from Alex.

Alex tried to keep her expression neutral, but inside she was panicking. _Oh no, oh no... Why is he sitting next to me? What if he sees? Is Sonic keeping his hood down?_ A quick peek revealed he was. But just to make sure he remained vigilant, Alex placed her hand over his and gave it a gentle squeeze.

The boy across the aisle sat quietly, uncertain if he ought to speak or not. Eventually, he drew in a deep breath and spoke to Alex, blurting out the first thing he could think of.

"Uh, hey... I, uh... I really like your hair."

Beneath his hood, Sonic's ear perked up.

"Oh, thanks," said Alex, taking a hold of one of the longer locks in front and tugging on it.

This strange little quick seemed silly, as though she were trying to peek at her own hair to remember what it looked like. Sonic glanced at her through his peripherals. She was doing that thing he thought was cute, where she tucked her hair behind her ear. Why now, in front of this guy? Sonic couldn't quite explain it, but for some reason he liked it better when he was the only one who got to see it.

"I was trying to do a Ramona Flowers type thing, but I chickened out and couldn't commit, so I just kept the hairdo and only dyed the tips," Alex explained. "My hair used to be super long, like all the way down to my waist, but it's rough for swimming and I hate wearing those rubber caps. So, I cut it."

Damn it. She was rambling. Curse her penchant for talking too much when nervous!

"Ramona Flowers... Like in Scott Pilgrim?" The young man tilted his head, inspecting her hair a little more before smiling and nodding, pushing his glasses up his nose as he did. "I can see it. It looks good. Might be too much if you went all in, though. Just doing the tips was a good choice."

Alex felt herself blushing. She couldn't help it. She was on the shy side and didn't often talk to guys. She really hoped Sonic didn't notice. That would be embarrassing.

Sonic watched Alex closely. The boy was giving her compliments. Seemingly honest, and maybe harmless, compliments. But Alex's reactions to these compliments... She was blushing! Actually blushing!

_C'mon now, Alex... this guy's just some dork. You shouldn't give him the time of day._

"You have Mr. Pelonski for math, don't you?" But the he barely gave her a moment to answer as he plunged on. "I'm in his class too. I usually sit towards the back."

"Oh," said Alex. "Yeah. Sorry. I wouldn't have seen you. I always sit in the front of classes I'm bad at... you know, to make sure I'm really absorbing everything."

"Yeah, I always see you up front," the young man continued. "I guess I thought it was because you're really interested in the subject or something."

Alex snorted. "Ha! No way. It's more of a self-discipline thing. I totally suck at math, and if I were to sit anywhere but up front, I'd just end up daydreaming."

Sonic's leg began to bounce in an impatient manner. If he wasn't careful, it was going to move into a blur. Sensing this, Alex placed her hand on his knee to stop his impatient twitching. Sonic glanced up at Alex, but she wasn't even looking his way. Her attention was still primarily on this other guy. Sonic crossed his arms over his chest and slumped in his seat.

"Honestly, I think Mr. Pelonski is kinda boring," said the young man. "I basically already know everything he goes over."

Sonic plonked his forehead against the window. Couldn't this bus go any faster?

"I don't think I got your name," said Alex. "I don't suppose it's Peter, is it?" she asked, glancing pointedly as his shirt with the ghost of a smirk.

"Huh?" He glanced down at his shirt, reminding himself of what he was wearing today. "Oh! Peter... right! Haha... It's Patrick, actually. Patrick Miller."

"Just thought I'd ask. If it was Peter, we'd have a full Spider-Man between the two of us. Uh, because my last name is Parker," she added awkwardly, realizing that without context, her joke wouldn't make sense. Then, blushing, she smacked a hand to her head. "Ugh... Sorry. Bad joke."

"Nah, it's fine," said Patrick with a grin. "And don't take this the wrong way, but I already know your name. Partially from class, and partially... from the Starlight Gaming Convention."

Alex's smile fell. "Oh. So, you were there, huh?" She lowered her gaze, staring at her feet. "I guess I was a bit of a spectacle."

"I'm glad you ended up being okay after all that," said Patrick with a gentle smile. "With tech that experimental, I thought it would've had a much more disastrous effect on you. You seem like you're all right, though. And that aside, I thought it was great the way you were trash talking that Edgar Roman. The guy's a real sleaze. He deserved to get put in his place."

Alex glanced up at him again and smiled. "Thanks," she said softly. "I just hate guys like that. They're so arrogant. And yeah, sleaze is definitely the right word. Like, even when I went up there and he was about to put me under, I told him I changed my mind. I was really nervous, you know? But he didn't care. He just activated the machine anyway."

Sonic was hoping for a way for this conversation to end. Oh, it was so painful. If something didn't happen soon, he was about to cause something to happen.

Alex let out a long sigh. "Still, if I had kept my mouth shut and hadn't provoked him, I wouldn't have gotten singled out. But I'm mouthy, Always have been. And besides that, I'm bad with peer pressure. Anyway, I _am_ pretty lucky it didn't turn out worse. That's what the doctor said, too. I still get these pretty nasty migraines. But I deal, you know?"

"Ouch. Well, migraines aside, I'm glad you're alright. If it had been worse, I might never of had the chance to talk to you like—"

Alex glanced out the window and uttered a curse. She stood up and quickly yanked on the cord above the window. The bus rolled to a halt.

"Almost missed my stop," she said, blushing a little, for it was due to the fact that she had become so absorbed in her conversation with Patrick.

_About time!_ thought Sonic.

She took Sonic by the hand and tugged him gently along. "It was nice meeting you, Patrick," she called back as she led Sonic down the aisle towards the doors.

Patrick blinked. They were getting off already? "Oh... uh... yeah! It was..." As they passed him down the aisle, Patrick got a good look at her little brother's shoes. "Woah! Hey, your brother's got some cool Sonic shoes! Are those limited-edition Pumas? Where'd he get them?"

For a moment, Alex froze like a deer in headlights. She blurted out the first thing that came to her head.

"Uh... eBay, I think?"

Then with one last hasty smile, she tugged Sonic off the bus. Patrick rose from his seat as he called out one more time.

"Uh... Hey! Do you wanna... like... study... toge—"

But the doors closed behind them and the bus began to roll away.

"...ther... sometime?"

He plopped back into his seat and sighed, gazing out the window until the girl and her little brother were out of sight.

The young man sitting behind him glanced up from his phone. "Smooth, guy."

Patrick glowered and slumped in his seat. "Shut up."


	6. Chapter 6

As the bus rolled away, Alex let go of Sonic's hand and leaned against a tree, letting out a long breath.

"Man... That was close!"

"Ugh. Close?" asked Sonic. "That ride felt like a freakin' eternity!"

Alex shot him an exasperated look. "You weren't supposed to say that, remember? You shouldn't be so predictable, Sonic." She tweaked his nose affectionately. Then, giggling she began walking down the sidewalk with what seemed to be a new spring in her step. She seemed strangely cheerful all of a sudden.

Sonic scrunched up his face and wiggled his nose. "It wasn't the speed of the bus that made it feel so long..." he muttered. "Who was that guy, anyway?"

Alex's steps briefly faltered, but she continued on. "I don't know. I just met him today. But I guess we have a class together." She shouldered her satchel a little higher as she seemed to gaze off at nothing in particular. "Patrick, I guess. Hmm..."

Sonic crossed his arms and shot Alex an annoyed look that she never saw. They walked down the sidewalk of a suburban middle-class neighborhood. These surroundings were far more lavish than Alex's humble apartment complex near the campus.

"Whoa. Swanky."

"Everyone in _this_ neighborhood is pulling the nine-to-fiver, so we shouldn't have to worry too much. But still, keep your head down just in case. And don't worry," she added quickly, with a knowing smile. "We're almost there."

"Hey, if your aunt lives around here, why don't you? Why are you stuck in that little place?"

"Well... I did for a little while. After Dad died and Mom got sick, we lost our house. So, I lived with my aunt and cousin for a bit. But I'm trying to learn how to be self-sufficient. I wanna be able to take care of my mom, and I can't do that if I'm relying on other people all the time."

Sonic frowned. It sure sounded like this girl lived a rough life. Not bad, by any means. But not exactly easy, either. And for some reason, much of it was self-imposed. Sonic supposed he could understand the desire to be self sufficient and not have to rely on others. After all, he didn't like relying on others either. He'd much rather be the one being relied _on._ That's what made it so difficult to let Alex, practically a stranger, take the reigns of this little mission. But he legitimately liked Alex, so that at least made it a little easier.

"Actually, saying that out loud sounds kind of stupid, doesn't it?" she said. "It would be smarter to just live with my aunt. And thinking about it, I really should've let Mr. Roman pay me off to keep quiet about the whole REMgage thing. Then I might've been able to pay off mom's hospital bills, too." She let out a long sigh. "Hindsight's 20/20, I guess. I just didn't want to be 'bought' like that."

Sonic placed a hand on her arm, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "I think that's called having integrity. And there's nothing wrong with that, Alex. From what I've seen, you've been doing great on your own. Though, it doesn't hurt to have help from others once in a while," he said, knowing it was advice he could afford to take, himself.

Alex grinned. That grin... something about it was familiar. It was almost like looking in a mirror. It seemed like she might have spent years perfecting it, and now it came almost naturally.

"You're sweet. Remind me to give you a hug later, okay?"

Sonic grinned and gave a little salute. "Check."

"Well, here we are."

They had just arrived at the house at the end of a cul-de-sac. It was a charming split-level home with pastel yellow vinyl siding, pale blue shutters and a white picket fence and attached two-door garage.

"Nice place," Sonic remarked. "You said no one was home? Wouldn't your aunt have her car if she wasn't home?"

"She's got two cars," Alex explained. She clapped a hand on Sonic's shoulder and gazed up at the house. "This is what we call the American Dream, Sonic. Unfortunately, it's called that because a portion of us can _only_ dream of it." Then, conspiratorially, she added, "It's also what happens when you win a nasty divorce settlement against your husband."

"I didn't get any of what you just said, but I'll take your word for it."

"Come on." Alex led him up the front walk to the door and opened it with the key that hung from her lanyard. Once inside, Sonic found himself in a small foyer. He gazed around in awe.

"Whoa... it's bigger inside than it looks outside."

It was such a large, fancy house. He'd never seen one like it. They simply didn't exist back home. Humans certainly liked their lavish accommodations.

Alex led the way upstairs into the fanciest kitchen he'd ever laid eyes on. There, Alex found her aunt's extra car keys and pocketed them.

"Item one collected," she said as she texted her aunt, _Borrowing the car._ "Now for item two."

Alex led the way down a hallway and into a bedroom that appeared as though it belonged to an adolescent boy. There were posters on the walls of hip-hop and indie rock bands and a slew of Pokemon paraphernalia, which, to Sonic, looked like a bunch of strange, smiling little monsters. On top of a dresser across from the bed was a small flat screen TV and a plethora of gaming consoles. Alex grabbed the Nintendo Switch from its dock and handed it to Sonic.

"Here. This is for you. You know, for the trip. I know everything's going a lot slower than you'd like, but it's for the best. At least this way you won't get bored. Incidentally, guard that with your life. If anything happens to it, my cousin will kill me."

"Huh? What's this thing supposed to be? What do I do with it?"

"It's a handheld video game," she explained. "It's Nintendo, so I can't say how many Sonic games will be on there; though there could be some, seeing as Sega is more a third-party developer these days. Liam might have Sonic Mania. Either way, it'll give you something to do while you wait for me to finish with Mr. Roman."

Sonic looked affronted. "Hey, wait just a—"

"Yes," she insisted, having anticipated just what he was going to say. "You have to stay in the car. No way can we let Mr. Roman see you. He's such a sleaze, he'd try to capitalize on you right away. Trust me, you do _not_ want to be a performing monkey for that jerk. I learned that the hard way."

Sonic rolled his eyes. "Fiiine. Jeez. Like this Roman guy could even catch me."

Alex ignored him as she texted Liam.

_Borrowing your Switch._

She led Sonic downstairs and was just heading for the adjoined garage when a man stepped out of a nearby room and spoke her name.

"Alex?"

Alex quickly pushed Sonic through the garage door and spun around to face the man who'd addressed her while using her body to block Sonic from sight.

"O-Oh! Um, hey Eric," stammered Alex. "I didn't know you were here."

Before her stood a muscular man in his late 20s, attractive but with a dull expression, as though there wasn't much going on upstairs. He wore a gray, form fitting T-shirt, camo pants, and a baseball cap.

"S'all right," he said in a slow, country drawl. "I stayed over last night. Your auntie cooks a mean brisket."

"Ah," said Alex, nodding. "Well, I'm just taking the car. So I'll be—"

"Damn girl," he said, scratching his beard and appraising her. "You're lookin' fine."

While Sonic couldn't really see the guy past Alex, he listened to him talk. Kinda slow sounding, in Sonic's summation. And he made some kind of comment that struck Sonic as... Well, he didn't know the word for it, but it seemed like this guy was giving Alex some unwanted attention.

Alex forced herself to smile. "Yes. We grow up so fast, don't we? Anyway, let my aunt know I'm taking the car and—"

"Who's that behind you?" he asked, learning forward for a peek into the garage.

Alex planted her hands firmly on either side of the doorway. "Oh, I'm just babysitting for a friend. She's pulling a double shift today. Anyway, I'll be seeing you." Alex turned and motioned Sonic to a Dodge Mini-van.

"Damn fine," the man named Eric repeated, shaking his head and returning to the smoke-filled room he'd emerged from.

"Phew... that was close," said Alex as she backed the mini-van out of the garage and down the streets of suburbia.

Sonic scowled. "Now who the hell was _that_ guy?"

"That was Eric," said Alex with a disgusted roll of her eyes. "My aunt's boyfriend. He's mostly harmless. But he gets to drinking and acts like an asshole. I guess I should've mentioned, he's also one of the reasons I moved out. He's over there a lot, though I honestly didn't think he'd be there while Aunt Dena was gone. I guess she's getting more lenient with him. Bum needs to get a job. Do you believe he's 15 years younger than her? I don't know what she's thinking. But I know what _he's_ thinking. He's a big-time gold digger. I really hope she doesn't let him screw her over. Anyway, I'm just glad he didn't see you."

Sonic sat with his arms crossed and his foot tapping against the console in front of him as he listened to everything Alex had to say about this Eric guy. Everything about the man really pissed him off, even if he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was. More like a gut feeling.

"Yeah," he said darkly, "You can definitely _not_ live with your aunt again. In fact, maybe avoid going there alone. Like... ever."

Alex turned her head to look at him. There was a sort of gleam in her eyes that he couldn't quite place. It seemed to be somewhere between gratitude and fear.

"Thank you," she said softly, turning her gaze back to the road.

Sonic thought he saw tears in her eyes, but she had a soft smile on her face. Perhaps she hadn't been entirely forthcoming with him about why she'd no longer lived with her aunt. It seemed like it might very well have to do more with this Eric guy than anything else.

But Sonic's words to her apparently healed some sort of hidden wound. The moment he told her not to go there alone, the tension he'd sensed from her upon encountering Eric seemed to quickly disappear, like a butterfly shedding its constraining cocoon. It was as though he'd vindicated her of something. As though he'd freed her from a cage.

Eventually, Alex guided the van onto the highway and they were en route to North Lake City. As Alex and Sonic had never eaten a proper breakfast, Alex stopped at a gas station convenience store and bought them some breakfast sandwiches.

"It's garbage food," she said as she passed him a lukewarm sandwich wrapped in crinkled paper. "But it's food at any rate... I think."

"Somehow, I thought Earth had better food than this." But so as not to hurt Alex's feelings, he quickly added, "But I'm hungry enough to eat anything, though. So, thanks!"

"Trust me, we definitely have better food than this. This is the kinda crap food you get when you're on the go. We call it fast food. While some things are good fast," she said giving him a wink, "Other things... well, you sacrifice quality for speed. But don't worry. Assuming all goes well, I'll make you a nice home-cooked meal to celebrate."

"Now _that_ sounds like a plan to me!"

For a while, they rode in companionable silence, eating food that wasn't great, but wasn't awful either. But after a while...

"Sonic... why _did_ you stay?" she asked softly. "Last night, I thought for sure if you weren't a hallucination that you'd definitely run away. Why didn't you?"

"Why'd I stay? Because..." He thought for a moment, considering his answer. "Because you asked me to, Alex. You seemed like you really needed some help. Like you just really needed someone to be there for you. So, I stayed because you asked."

Alex smiled at him before turning her gaze back to the road ahead. Her eyes were getting all shimmery again. She was silent for a long time. What exactly was going through her mind?

"It's been hard," she said finally. "Since my dad died. I miss him so much. I know I'm supposed to be doing the big college girl thing now, but I'm still young. All the other freshmen seem so happy and carefree. But I feel like I'm... I don't know... like I'm missing something. It's like..."

She hesitated a moment, trying to put her thoughts into words.

"It's like when Dad died, I lost a piece of my childhood. I don't think I was ready to give it up. Not yet. I'm only a freshman. I'm supposed to be in the prime of my life. But I couldn't grasp it, no matter how much I wanted to because, as contradictory as this sounds, I didn't want to. I was afraid to. Because it hurt too much. But, like, ever since you showed up – and I know it's hardly been a day – I feel like a kid again. That innocent, happy kid I used to be, eager for an adventure. I think I'm having one now. And I really hope it's not too callous to say, because I know you're here against your will and you want to get home, but..." She looked at him again and smiled. "I'm really glad you're here, Sonic. Even if it's only for a little while."

Alex could feel one of her tears on the brink of spilling over, though she tried desperately to prevent it. Sonic reached up and caught it on his finger. Alex let out a soft gasp. She hadn't expected that. She felt herself blushing, which only embarrassed her even more.

"Alex, I don't care how long I have to be here. If someone needs my help, that's where I belong. So right now, I'm right where I'm supposed to be."

Alex chewed her lip to keep from smiling too much. Why was he so sweet? Didn't he realize this was just going to make it harder for her to send him home?

He tilted his head with a toothy grin. "Whenever something starts to bother you... just over-power it with your smile. There's nothing more powerful than that."

"You know," she said thoughtfully, "I feel like I've heard you say something like that before. Somewhere... sometime..."

Sonic arched an eyebrow, looking at Alex in a befuddled manner. He wasn't sure what she meant by that. After all, they'd only just met a day ago. When would she have had a chance to hear him say anything like that?

She laughed and shook her head. "That's silly, isn't it? Anyway, I'm not one to get depressed so easily. I honestly don't know why I'm venting all of a sudden. It really isn't like me, and the last thing I want is for you to pity me like I'm some sort of charity case or something. But you're just really easy to talk to. It all just comes out naturally. Almost like I'm reconnecting with an old friend that I haven't seen for a really long time." She ran a hand through her hair, looking flustered and embarrassed. "I don't suppose that makes any sense."

Sonic crossed one leg lackadaisically over the other and put his arms behind his head. "Maybe we just mesh really well. I'm totally cool like that." And there was the other Sonic. The playfully cocky Sonic. The true blue dude with a 'tude. He even gave her a grin that went right along with a comment of that nature.

Alex laughed. "And humble, too, as a certain chipmunk princess might have said in the days of Saturday morning cartoons."

The rest of the drive was pleasant but uneventful. They may have been going slower than Sonic would have liked, but Alex was pleasant company, and she'd taken a great interest in him, grilling him all the while about his world and his friends.

"So, is Tails real?"

"Of course! He's my best bud!"

"How about Knuckles?"

"Yeah. Helpful in a pinch... _and_ with a punch! Kinda dense sometimes, though."

"Freedom Fighters?"

"Never heard of 'em."

"So, no Princess Sally?"

"Pretty sure I'd remember meeting a princess."

"What about Scratch and Grounder? They're these two goofy robots from the AoStH universe."

"I dunno what that ol' Eggman calls his robots. I just call 'em scrap!"

"What about Amy Rose?"

"Who?"

"She's a pink hedgehog who wields a giant piko-piko hammer. I think you'd remember her."

Sonic sat up a bit straighter with an interested gaze. "A pink hedgehog? I dunno... is she cute?"

"Maybe if you're into yandere," Alex mumbled. "What about Shadow? He's this black hedgehog who's supposed to be the 'ultimate lifeform.'"

"Sounds kinda lame if you ask me."

"Okay, what about Old Man Owl? Or Sera?"

"Sera?"

"She's sort of this strange hybrid girl from the OVA. She's human like me, but with cat ears and a tail."

"Sounds kinda hot."

"So-nniiic..." groaned Alex with a roll of her eyes.

"Whaaat?"

"So, it's just you and Tails and Knuckles, then, huh? What about the Chaotix?"

"Oh, you know about _them_? Please. Don't get me started on _those_ guys. They're nice enough, well-meaning guys, but they really don't have their act together. Boy, I'll tell ya..."

"Interesting," mused Alex. "Best I can figure, you're your own continuity. Perhaps one more closely related to the early games. I'm still _very_ curious how you came to be known on our world. I mean, you said Robotnik is from here. I guess that could be the link. Maybe _he_ knows. I mean, not that I wanna go get coffee with him and discuss the theories of existentialism," she added quickly.

"Yeah, I can't say I've ever really asked him. I don't know how or why he would supply information about us and our world, but hey, if he _did_ do it, I oughta thank him. Now I'm a freakin' super star!"

Alex frowned. "But the question is... why? And somehow, I don't think he's gonna want a thank-you. Maybe let's try not to provoke him. I know you've gotta do your thing in the end and get him back to your world, but until that time, I have every intention of slipping under his radar, thank-you-very-much."

"I dunno... I think I'd like to get to the bottom of all this. Figure out what his scheme is this time. I hate not knowing what he's up to."

Alex spotted an exit sign for North Lake City in two miles. She took the off-ramp and the GPS directed her to go left. "Looks like we're almost there," she said.

The GPS led her through a bustling downtown city with highways winding around and through it. Sonic's eyes widened as he pressed himself close to the window, watching the buildings roll by.

"Whoa... It's almost like Metropolis. Pretty close to it, I'd say. Though the buildings in Metropolis are _way_ higher."

Alex perked up. "Metropolis? Like Metropolis Zone? Oh, I've _got_ to ask about that one. Remind me later."

However, when she saw Sonic pressing his face against the window, she reached over and pulled him back. "Careful," she warned. "The windows are tinted, but if you press your face right up against them, someone's bound to see."

After taking another left onto a street which led to a more suburban part of North Lake City, they found themselves driving through a ritzy neighborhood of mansions with several acres of land each.

"Wow," murmured Alex. "So this is how the one percent live. There's even a median in the middle of the street! A freakin' median! With trees!"

Alex turned a corner and the GPS informed them, "You have reached your destination."

Alex slowed the van to a crawl. "Holee shiiiit..."

At the end of the long road which led through the expensive neighborhood was a grand lakefront property. On it was a massive beach house, designed with super modern, almost futuristic architecture. Lots of large windows, angles, pillars and avant garde stonework covered the place. This was the one and only palatial estate of Edgar Roman. And estate was really the only word for it. it wasn't a home. It was a freaking manor.

"This is the place?" Sonic marveled. "This Roman guy must be loaded."

Alex grimaced. "Why is it always the sleazy assholes who get all the money? Man, I hate rich people."

She drove slowly by the estate which was surrounded entirely by a gated fence. "This place is _bound_ to have cameras everywhere. I'm gonna have to park further away. I don't want anyone – least of all _him_ – catching a glimpse of you."

Sonic smirked and crossed his arms. "They'd never catch sight of me. Guarantee it."

Alex circled the subdivision a few times until she found a remote cul-de-sac that ended in a smattering of far less impressive homes. She parked the car and drew in a deep breath before turning to face Sonic.

"Okay, listen... I know this sucks for you, having to put the control in someone else's hands, but trust me that I've got your best interests at heart. I'll do everything within my power to get the ball rolling in the direction we need it to go, but I _need_ you to stay here, okay? I think you understand the whys by now. Just promise me you won't get out of the car, okay?"

Sonic's eyes narrowed and he gave Alex something of a glare. Though he wasn't going to go against her wishes, he was definitely going to make his thoughts known.

"I don't like it. Not one bit. If this guy is as sleazy as you say... I hate that you have to go in there alone."

"Come on, Sonic..." said Alex with a chuckle which sounded just a bit too nervous to his ears. "I mean, yeah, he's sleazy, but he's like, 50-something years old. I don't think he's gonna do anything... ya know... like _that_."

"Fine... I'll stay here. But if I spot anything really fishy going on, I'm making a move!"

Alex sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Look, I don't think anything... fishy... is gonna happen. So, unless you somehow sense something that would constitute as an emergency from way over here, please just stay, okay? That being said, let's discuss what would constitute as an emergency. Obviously, Robotnik is an emergency. But there's absolutely no reason he'd show up. This is a whatever town in the buttcrack of the northeastern United States where nothing interesting ever happens. And your heroine," she said, placing a hand on her chest and holding herself with mock pride, "Is the most average, plain, inconspicuous person on Earth who couldn't even get her high school crush to notice her."

Sonic wasn't sure about her words that she was average, plain, and inconspicuous. But she seemed confident that everything would be fine.

"And in the unlikely event that, for whatever reason, Edgar Roman poses a threat that I can't tackle without the help of a super-speedy anthropomorphic blue hedgehog, I'll scream really loud, and you can come and save me. But that's not gonna happen." Joking aside, Alex placed her hands on his shoulders. "Please..." she said softly. "If anyone finds out about you and the military captures you and dissects you, it'll be all my fault. I couldn't live with that."

She gazed pleadingly into his eyes. With a sigh and a nod, Sonic relinquished and accepted her desire to do this alone.

Smiling once more, she plucked the Nintendo Switch from his pocket. "Besides, there's no reason to get bored. Not with this."

When Sonic looked like he was about to make a comment to indicate that he might not know how to work it, Alex simply laughed. "You'll figure it out. You're a 16-year-old dude. Trust me, it'll be intuitive."

Then, gathering up her satchel, she opened the door and stepped out. "Well... wish me luck!" And with that, she was off.

Sonic gazed out the window after her. "Be careful, Alex."


	7. Chapter 7

Despite what she'd told Sonic, as Alex walked further and further from the mini-van and got closer and closer to Edgar Roman's estate, her heart began to race and she clutched her bag tighter.

_I don't know why I pretended to be so confident in front of him. I guess because I want him to think I can handle this so he won't do anything rash. But man... I_ really _don't want to do this._

She was nervous. After all, until Sonic showed up, she had been determined never to see Edgar Roman or think about the REMgage ever again. And now she was going straight into the lion's den; the lion who had put her in such danger and whose biggest concern was whether she'd go to the press or file a lawsuit against him. This was the type of guy she was dealing with; a rich, out-of-touch entrepreneurial tech giant only interested in furthering his own ambitions.

As Alex approached Roman's estate, she immediately saw something rather peculiar. While the gates to the estate were open, allowing her access to the grounds (and there were, as she had suspected, cameras mounted on either side of the gates), just beyond was a security kiosk. And sure enough, it was manned.

_Oh brother,_ thought Alex. _Really, how paranoid can you get?_

But the sign next to the gates reading 'Centurion Technologies' suggested that this was not only Edgar Roman's home, but also the headquarters for his company. Somehow, this only made Alex feel even more anxious.

Shouldering her satchel and steeling herself for what she must do, she walked determinedly towards the security guard, who looked incredibly bored and not entirely thrilled with the task of guarding this property. Alex couldn't help but sympathize with him.

"Good morning," she greeted in a firm but pleasant tone. "My name is Alexandra Parker and I'm here to see Mr. Roman. And no, I don't have an appointment, but I assure you he'll want to see me." _If he knows what's good for him._ "I'm the girl who's brain he almost fried," she added by way of explanation.

The guard looked her up and down, then nodded. "I see. Just a moment. Let me call ahead." He leaned back in his chair and reached for a wall-mounted phone and made a call to the main building.

"Yes, Mr. Roman, sir? This is Wade, at the security booth. I have a Miss Parker here to see you? She says she doesn't have..."

Alex couldn't hear what was being said on the other end of the phone because it was muffled, but she definitely caught the tone. Roman wasn't happy. But she had no doubt he would see her, and she was not at all surprised when the guard nodded.

"Right. Yes sir." He hung up the phone. "Mr. Roman will see you, Miss Parker. Go on up to the front." He grabbed his mobile phone and leaned back in his chair, no longer invested.

Though she'd been given the go-ahead, Alex wasn't any less intimidated as she made her way up the front walk to the large double doors. She had just raised her hand to knock when the doors opened and Edgar Roman appeared, looking like he just stepped out of an episode of Miami Vice in his white suit jacket over a T-shirt and a pair of blue jeans.

"Well... Alex Parker. What a surprise this is!"

Despite his pleasant tone and welcoming gesture, Alex could see Mr. Roman was nervous. Normally, she'd take a great amount of vindictive pleasure out of this, but in this case, he wasn't the only one who was nervous. She had a mission. One of great importance, and its success depended on her ability to make nice with Edgar Roman.

Trying not to roll her eyes at the way he was dressed, and especially making every attempt to swallow her disgust, Alex feigned her best smile.

"Hey, Mr. Roman. I'm not here to cause trouble, just in case you're worried." And to her credit, she sounded, even to her own ears, quite amiable. "But... could we please talk?"

"Talk? Sure. We can talk. Come on inside."

Roman led her inside the house, which was nothing like a house at all, but a mansion/work lab hybrid. She saw people all over the house, working at computers, tinkering with machines, or just enjoying leisure time with video games, ping pong, pinball, or having coffee and chatting. These people were his employees, and they (and Edgar Roman) lived, worked, and played here.

"Welcome to Centurion, Miss Parker."

Alex gazed around her in awe. "Wow. Guess you save a lot of gas mileage on commuting to work, huh?"

Roman merely laughed. "Can I get you anything to drink?"

"No, thanks." She was too nervous. She wasn't sure she could eat or drink anything until this was over. "If you don't mind, Mr. Roman," she said, sweet as can be, "I'd like it if we could talk in private."

"We'll go upstairs to my office. C'mon."

Mr. Roman led her up a staircase whose steps were mounted in such a way as to make it look like they were hovering. Alex followed him into a large room with a long horizontal window on one side that overlooked the main lab where his employees worked. On the other side of the room, just behind his desk, were a pair of sliding glass doors which led out onto a rooftop veranda that overlooked the lake. Surrounded by such lavish accommodations, Alex found her distaste for Edgar Roman growing. However, she would have to push that aside if she was to put on a convincing performance.

Mr. Roman closed the door behind them and motioned her to a chair in front of his desk. "Please. Have a seat. Let's talk."

Reluctantly, Alex did so. Once he was seated at his desk across from her, Alex took a deep breath. This was it. Time to put her acting skills to the test. With a smile that looked very much genuine, she said, "Mr. Roman... Like I said, I'm not here to cause trouble. The other day you made me an offer. You were willing to pay me a hefty sum for my... discretion. I'm not here for that," she added quickly at the worried look on his face.

It was certainly hard to say that, since Alex knew if she demanded it, he would pay up. And God knew it was tempting.

"I'm not asking for a handout," she assured him. "I'm not asking for hush money. All I'm asking is for you to do the right thing and pay for the medical expenses incurred by the incident."

She reached into her satchel and took out her discharge summary and bills from Scottstown General Hospital and placed them on his desk for him to look at.

"I'm a college student, Mr. Roman. I'm struggling enough as it is just to pay tuition. My mom is also... unwell. She's been chronically ill for a long time. I do my best to help pay for her medical bills. I could demand that you help me with these things. And I'm very well aware that you're in a situation where you can't afford to refuse me. But I'm not asking that. However, taking all those things consideration, I certainly can't afford to pay my own medical bills. I can't even afford to get so much as a cold. So, would you please just pay for my medical expenses?" Her eyes beseeched him as she did her best to look like a damsel in distress.

That was all he really needed to hear. Roman took the manila folder she placed on his desk and thumbed through the bills inside. He simply nodded, looking far less worried.

"Okay. Consider it done, Miss Parker. I'll pay this for you. You got hurt while using _my_ equipment, so It's only fair, I suppose."

Alex was glad, though not at all surprised that Mr. Roman agreed. But at this point, that was more of a guise, if anything, to get her this far. What she needed now, her true mission, was to gain access to the REMgage.

"Now," he said, holding the folder in one hand and giving it a little shake as though weighing it. "If I pay this... will this be over and done with? You won't blame me or my company for any more pain, suffering, or mental anguish and whatever other terms a legal advisor would suggest you say to me?"

Alex hesitated. "Actually, Mr. Roman... There is _one_ other thing."

Roman's face began to sink. Slowly, he moved his hand to the inside pocket of his suit jacket to pull out his checkbook. Alex chewed her lip. God, she hated this so much. There was a part of her that wanted to just take his money and leave, but she had to do this – for Sonic. After all, it was the real reason she was here.

"The REMgage," she said after a brief hesitation. "I want access to it."

Roman's hand paused in its descent towards his pocket and he gaped at her.

"The REMgage?"

"I can imagine what you must be thinking, Mr. Roman. Why would I want to play in your little virtual reality machine after what happened, right? Well, it's true that whole incident was traumatizing. And at first, I truly didn't want to have anything to do with it _or_ you again. But the more I thought about it, I realized something..."

She leaned across his desk. "Mr. Roman, you're not just selling a DIY video game experience. You're selling a _fantasy_. The REMgage could be so much more! Sure, you could make up your own video game as you go along, like you originally intended. But you could also just live an experience! You're basically lucid dreaming, right? You could do anything. It doesn't have to be a game. The more I thought about it, the more I realized the possibilities."

Alex lowered her gaze, wringing her hands nervously in her lap and doing her best to look submissive. "You see, Mr. Roman... My dad died a few years ago. He and I were really close..."

_Sorry for using you this way, Dad,_ Alex prayed to her late father. _But if you were here, I know you'd understand. I have to do this to help Sonic._

"I've often thought to myself that I would give anything to see him one last time. And you know, last night I realized..." Slowly, Alex lifted her gaze to Mr. Roman once more, and her expression was one of pure emotion. "...I can. I can bring him back in the REMgage! I can talk to him again! Play with him again! If I want, I can re-live every vacation I ever went on with my Dad. I can re-live holidays, birthdays; every special moment I had with him that I never thought I could have again. I _can_ have it again! I can have it in there!" She leaned towards him eagerly. "Mr. Roman, don't you see what you have here?"

Edgar Roman steepled his fingers and rested his nose atop the arch. Alex had his full attention and interest. There was a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his lips, and it encouraged her to continue.

"It's _so_ much more than a video game! And if you market it as something more, you'll get _so_ much more buy-in! I need it, Mr. Roman," she said, sounding almost like a drug addict. "Risks be damned, come what may... I want access to it. Whenever I want. Let me beta test it for you! We know what the dangers are, and we know I can handle them. I can survive them. Let me be your guinea pig, your test subject, whatever." She leaned closer, her eyes pleading with him once more. "You want me to sign an NDA, I'll sign an NDA. A contract stating I'm beta testing it for you? I'll do that, too. Mr. Roman, I'll do anything."

Roman lowered his hands, showing off a wide, toothy smile. "I tell you what, Miss Parker... Since you're so adamant about it, I can have an NDA contract written up for you. One that says you know full well the risks involved in beta testing the REMgage and are _still_ going to test it."

Alex tried to look pleased, but inside she was seething. Edgar Roman looked like a child who'd just been told Christmas was coming early this year. Between that and the way he spoke of drawing up a contract with an almost villainous eagerness in his voice, it was with great difficulty that she maintained her smile.

_I've just sold my soul to the devil for you, Sonic. I hope this works and we can get you home, because my brain is_ literally _on the line._

"If you're willing to sign such a document, then I think you have yourself a deal, Miss Parker!"

Edgar Roman stood up from his desk. As he did, Alex's eyes were drawn to the sliding glass doors behind him. Something was casting a shadow over the lake-view balcony. A strange floating object hovered into view; something which, at first, Alex took for a drone. But upon closer inspection, it was far too big to be a drone. Alex squinted her eyes. Was that... a vehicle?

_What in the hell?_

It was just hovering there! Alex's eyes went wide as two rocket launchers slid open on either side of the floating craft. With his back to the veranda, Edgar Roman didn't notice. Instead, he was still wearing that same shit-eating grin.

"I _do_ believe that this is the most unexpected thing that could possibly happen today," he was saying.

The vehicle fired two rockets straight at the veranda.

"M-Mr. Roman!"

But that was all Alex managed to get out before the explosion.

The veranda side of the office was instantly obliterated. Both Edgar Roman and Alex were launched off their feet. The force of the explosion sent Alex flying backwards. The back of her head collided against something with a dull thump. She landed hard on the floor and rolled a few feet before coming to a stop.

Back in Aunt Dena's van, Sonic was reclined in the passenger seat with his feet on the dashboard, playing Sonic Mania on the Switch when he not only heard, but felt the explosion. With a shout, he tossed the Switch aside and scurried to the back of the van and looked out the window. A great black cloud of billowing smoke issued from Roman's estate.

"ALEX!"

***

For a moment, the world was dark. Then, as Alex slowly came to, she found herself laying on the floor of what was once Roman's office. Her head was throbbing and there was a high-pitched ringing in her ears. She could feel a warm trickle of blood running from the side of her forehead where glass from one of the windows had cut her. Her outstretched arm looked as though she'd climbed down a chimney, all ashy and sooty, but otherwise unmarred.

All around her was utter devastation. The windows were smashed to pieces, and there was a small trash fire flickering in Mr. Roman's wastepaper basket. The room was filled with smoke, dust and debris. Alex rolled onto her side, coughing and gasping for breath. Through bleary eyes, she saw a silhouette take shape in the cloud of dust and smoke. Then, a familiar figure stepped through the giant hole in the wall. Surrounding the figure, several glowing red laser eyes activated, shining their lights through the smoke.

"Hmm... Perhaps that entrance was just a little bit over the top, even for me. Oh well. Knowing the cockroach who owns this office, I'm certain that I haven't killed anyone... yet."

As the smoke lifted, the imposing figure stepped into the room. One glance was all it took for Alex to recognize him for who he was. For a moment, she was paralyzed – not with fear, but with awe.

He was a tall man, thick around the waistline, and dressed in a form-fitting black Kevlar body suit beneath a red coat with gold accents. His bald head gleamed in the light of the sun, shining through the busted-out windows and refracting off his dark blue lenses which hid his eyes entirely. His trademark mustache was a thick and bushy reddish-brown, though it was relegated to the more realistic proportions of a Fu Manchu style.

So, he had finally revealed himself. There in the wreckage of Edgar Roman's office stood none other than Dr. Robotnik!

"Secure the perimeter," he said to the hovering red-eyed drones which floated alongside him. "Make sure that no one comes in here."

The drones scattered. Some went back out the way they came, others flew through the shattered interior windows that overlooked the main lab.

Finally, a healthy dose of fear and survival instincts kicked in and Alex decided it was time to make a hasty retreat. Trying to cough quietly, she crawled across the floor below the level of the smoke, searching for the door. But as she crawled, an increasing sensation of pain in her left shoulder slowed her progress. Judging by the hole in her denim jacket and the raw skin beneath, she'd not gotten away completely un-singed after all.

Robotnik slowly, almost leisurely crossed the room, crunching the shattered glass beneath his tall black boots. Alex could just barely hear it over the ringing in her ears. Her left, in particular, was doing its best impression of a flat-lining heart monitor. Robotnik hadn't yet noticed her. Instead, his eyes were on the prone figure sprawled on the floor just a few feet away.

Edgar Roman was lying in a heap, his white blazer now gray and black with ash and burns. There were sooty smudges and streaks of red on his face. He was still conscious, but his vision was blurred. He brought a hand to his head, groaning in pain.

"Uuh... W-What... What happened?"

Robotnik's mustache arched up on one side of his face as he grinned. "This is your wake-up call, Edgar Roman. By my calculations, you've had this coming for well over 30 years. But you see, for me... It feels like only yesterday."

Alex had almost made it to the door when she overheard Robotnik's words. He addressed Mr. Roman by name, speaking to him as though he knew him! Against her better judgement, Alex abandoned her escape route and hid behind a charred, overturned couch to listen in.

"Wh-Who...? Who a-are you?" stammered Roman. "Wh-What do you want with me?"

Robotnik sneered as he looked down at Edgar Roman. "Look at what you've become after so many years. You've become so _old_ , Edgar. So _pathetic_. You're not the sneaky, conniving and outlandishly greedy young man I once worked so closely with."

Carefully, Alex peeked around the side of the couch to see Robotnik standing over Mr. Roman, who gaped up at him as though he were trying to put together the pieces of a puzzle. Robotnik grit his teeth.

"Use that damn brain of yours, idiot."

In that moment, Edgar Roman's eyes grew wide with a mix of shock and recognition. "Ch-Charles? Charles... is that you? That's... impossible."

_Charles???_ Alex mouthed to herself, brow furrowed. What the hell was going on? What was this? How did Robotnik know Edgar Roman?

"What's impossible," growled Robotnik, "is that you're still wearing that blasted 'Don Johnson' blazer after all these years. Whereas my presence is _far_ from impossible."

Alex's jaw dropped. _Robotnik knows Miami Vice?_

This was so surreal. But perhaps that was not so strange. If what Sonic said was true, Robotnik was from Earth originally. And judging by his commentary, Alex was able to narrow down the general time period in which he might have been present on Earth. What exactly was going on here? And was what was going on so important and so interesting that she should stay here whilst injured, listening in, instead of making a break for the door?

Alex could hear people running and screaming downstairs, and she could feel strange vibrations below. Apparently, Robotnik hadn't _just_ attacked Roman's office; he was raiding the entire facility. From her hideout behind the overturned couch, Alex couldn't get a glimpse through the window that overlooked the lab, but it sounded as if there was something mechanical moving around down there. Was it a robot? An army of robots? Whatever it was, it was either big... or there was a lot of it. Which begged the question: If she left this room, would she even be able to get out safely?

Once more, Alex's attention was ensnared by the conversation between Edgar and Robotnik. Robotnik loomed over Roman as the latter continued to sputter.

"Ch-Charles... but I thought you were—"

"Gone? Dead? Obliterated from existence? Oh ho, but you thought wrong, Edgar. You see, when you thought you erased me _and_ my family from existence, what you really did was transport us to an entirely different dimension. Yes... I survived. And I was searching for a way... a means... to finally return here and get my hands on _you_ , Edgar!"

"N-No, wait... Look, let's be reasonable, Charles."

"SILENCE!!" shouted Robotnik. "That name means nothing to me now! Charles Boddick is dead! Allow me to properly introduce myself. I... am... Robotnik." With a dramatic flourish, Robotnik took a bow.

For a moment, Roman merely gaped at him. "My God... You're insane."

Robotnik rose from his elegant bow, glaring at Roman. "What was that?"

"Charles, you've lost your damn mind! You took the name of our old company... and you've started cosplaying as a video game character... only to come blow up my house? You're a madman, Charles!"

Alex was beside herself in a mix of awe and confusion. Robotnik's real name was Charles Boddick and he had a family? And Edgar, somehow, teleported him to another dimension? What the _hell_ was going on? Although this was intriguing and certainly answered some questions (while also creating several others), she couldn't possibly stay here any longer. It wasn't safe. Covering her mouth with her sleeve to protect her lungs from the lingering smoke, Alex rose to a crouch and made another attempt for the door.

"A MAD MAN!?" Robotnik roared, causing Alex to duck down once more, heart pounding.

No, he hadn't seen her. He was just screaming at Roman. But the following exchange stopped her in her tracks, and once more she found herself hiding behind the couch and listening in.

"You sought to kill me... erase me from existence... all so you could take the Dreamcaster Machine we created together, which I _warned_ you was dangerous, and make a profit off of it."

_Dreamcaster?_

"You used it to get me out of the picture, and when my wife and sons got in the way, you did the same to them. Does that sound like the actions of a mentally stable person, Edgar?"

"Ch-Charles... that was like 30 some years ago..."

"NOT FOR ME, IT WASN'T!! Far more time has passed here than on that other world! You've had 30 odd years to rest on your laurels, but from my point of view, you ended Charles Boddick's life only about five years ago. For me, the wounds are still quite fresh. So, I do believe that the time has come to pay the piper."

Roman slowly managed to get to a sitting position and pushed himself up against a wall, gazing fearfully at Robotnik. "Wh-What do you intend to do, Charles? Put me in the machine? Recreate the same energy surge that sent _you_ away? Are you going to try to erase me, too?"

A wicked grin spread across Robotnik's face. "There was a time where the idea of simply ridding the world of your incompetence sounded like a satisfying conclusion. However, times have changed. And I have big plans for you... _and_ that REMgage of yours."

So Robotnik _did_ know about the REMgage! Then her theory was correct! The REMgage had been responsible for bringing Sonic and Robotnik to Earth. And now, apparently, Robotnik had plans for it.

_This isn't good,_ thought Alex. _This isn't good at all._

In fact, it was a huge conflict of interest. She and Sonic needed the REMgage to get Sonic home, but now Robotnik wanted it, too. She had hoped they could accomplish this without encountering the villain, but now he was after the same thing they were!

_Great... Just great._

Alex had heard enough. She couldn't stay here any longer. She had to get out and tell Sonic what happened. It wasn't safe here! Alex was just about to make her move, but then Roman spotted her peeping out at him from behind the couch. His gaze locked onto hers, his eyes silently pleading for help.

Alex winced. The last thing she wanted was to find herself facing a moral dilemma today. She hated Edgar Roman, hated everything he stood for _and_ hated him as a person. He was a sleaze, a scoundrel, someone who'd put her life at risk. And from what Robotnik had said, it sounded like something far worse could have happened to her inside the REMgage. It didn't exactly fill her with empathy for Edgar Roman. But it all came down to doing the right thing. And Alex couldn't bring herself to completely abandon the man to such a fate. However, there wasn't much she could do.

As their gazes locked, Alex took her phone from her pocket and pointed to it, giving him an imperceptible nod. ' _Yes, yes! I'll call the cops, okay?'_ said her look. _'Just stop looking at me, you idiot, or we'll both be screwed!'_

"What? What do you keep looking at?" Robotnik snapped.

Roman flinched and returned his gaze to Robotnik. "N-Nothing..."

"You always were the worst liar, Edgar. You start sweating profusely, and your eyes always get quite shifty. What are you hiding from me?"

Robotnik took a step towards him, and in so doing, stepped onto a slightly singed folder with crumpled documents inside. He gazed down at the folder beneath his boot, then reached down and picked it up.

"Hmm... What's this, I wonder? Medical bills and documents for... Alexandra Parker?"

Alex gasped and ducked back behind the couch, her heart pounding fiercely. _He knows my name now! Shit!_

Robotnik turned his gaze back to Edgar. A very small smile played across his lips. "There's someone else in this room... isn't there, Edgar?"

Roman's expression became one of panic. Again, his eyes flicked almost helplessly toward the couch. "What? N-No..."

Alex clapped a hand over her mouth, trying to quiet her breathing, which was difficult as she was beginning to hyperventilate. And Edgar's weak insistence that no one else was there wasn't at all convincing.

_Shit, shit, shit, shit..._

Robotnik's grin widened. "Yes... there is." He raised his hand and lifted a small micro panel built into the back of his glove. With a press of a button, he spoke into it like a comm link. "Sage! Stark! To me!"

Alex heard heavy footfalls on the stairs leading to Roman's office. Suddenly, the door to Roman's office was ripped off its hinges and a great hulking man push his way through like a bulldozer. He wore a formfitting uniform of purple and black with yellow accents and had hair the same color as Robotnik's mustache. It took every ounce of willpower Alex had not to scream at his entrance.

Shortly after, a second figure emerged from the ship that was hovering outside. As the figure stepped through the same blown-out window through which Robotnik had entered, Alex was surprised to discover that he was a tall, handsome young man who couldn't be much older than her. He wore an identical uniform to the other, but his was gray and black. His auburn hair was pulled back onto a long, tidy ponytail. He entered the room with ease and grace, looking as if every step, every move he made was meticulously planned.

Both men seemed perfectly human... except for their red eyes and the thin glowing circuits which trailed down their cheeks to their jawline with a slight zig-zag pattern. Both placed their hands against their chests and bowed their heads to Robotnik.

"Master," they said.

Alex wasn't sure what sort of robots these two were, or if they even _were_ robots, but one thing was for certain – they were Robotnik's goons. And they looked formidable. Alex scrunched herself up against the couch, bringing her legs to her chest and wrapping her arms around them, burying her face in her knees. Her head hurt, there was blood running down her temple, her shoulder was singed and she was trapped in a room with seriously dangerous people. She felt like crying or screaming. But instead, she settled for rocking and trembling, hoping to God they wouldn't find her.

_Oh please, oh please, oh please..._

The minions that Robotnik called Sage and Stark stood with their backs to Edgar Roman, who couldn't really see what these two looked like. Not that it mattered much; Edgar Roman was on the verge of a total freak-out, muttering, "This can't be happening... This can't be real..."

Robotnik looked between his two minions. "Report."

The huge, burly one spoke first. "This facility has been taken, Master. Though, all the fools who were here before have run off."

"That's fine," said Robotnik with a dismissive wave. "They were inconsequential to my plans. Sage?"

The handsome minion with the ponytail inclined his head. "As of yet, Master, the local authorities have not shown up. But no doubt, our time is limited before they do."

"Not that they'll be able to stand up to me," said Robotnik with a wicked grin, "But it would certainly be a nuisance I don't wish to deal with."

Alex was on the verge of tears. When the hell did Robotnik get so scary? Of course, this was the _real_ Robotnik. It wasn't like she had a basis of comparison. But which Robotnik was he most like? Certainly not the goofy AOSTH Robotnik. Perhaps the video game or comic book incarnation? Or worse, the SATAM version? If he found her, would he turn her into a robot?

_Oh God, oh God, oh God... Sonic, I know I told you to stay in the car, but please, please, please come help me!_ she thought desperately, knowing it was to no avail. Unless... he happened to hear the explosion. Maybe he was already on his way to save her! But then that would also mean he might be spotted! The police could be en route at this very moment. If they saw Sonic...

"Now," said Robotnik, "Besides our friend, Mr. Roman, do you detect anyone else in this room?"

Sage glanced around the smoky room, his crimson eyes narrowing. "Heightened adrenaline... a high body temperature caused by stress..."

Alex winced. _Damn you, adrenaline!_

"There _is_ another person in this room," said Sage, pointing towards the couch. "Over there."

Robotnik grinned and nodded at Stark, who slowly stalked towards the couch. Alex's eyes went wide. Had they found her? She soon had her answer, for suddenly the entire couch was lifted up from behind her with the greatest of ease, sending her tumbling backwards onto her back where she found herself gazing up at the huge, burly henchman who held the couch high above his head and grinned malignly down at her.

Slowly, Robotnik entered her line of sight, towering over her with a wicked gleam in his eyes. "You," he said with a wide grin, "must be Alexandra Parker."

And Alex?

"H-Hey," she squeaked.

It was all she had.

"Hello there," Robotnik replied, almost pleasantly, extending a hand.

No matter how desperately she wished to cringe away from him, it didn't seem wise to offend him. So, quite reluctantly, Alex accepted his hand and allowed him to pull her to her feet. He was surprisingly gentlemanly, but Alex nonetheless felt relieved when he released her hand. However, she noticed that he was still holding her medical records in his other hand, seemingly without any interest in releasing it.

"I know all of this must be frightfully confusing for you, and likely quite terrifying. But I am curious... What business does a young woman like yourself have with my old colleague, Mr. Roman?"

Alex opened her mouth to reply, but Mr. Roman beat her to it. In a moment of panic, he shouted, "She works for me! She was helping me test the REMgage!"

Alex's wide eyes flicked towards Roman. His game was obvious. He intended to use her as a distraction so he could try to make a quick break for it. Alex almost couldn't believe it. He'd seriously sacrifice a young woman to such a dangerous assortment of villains just so he could escape? Alex had never felt so betrayed by a fellow human, and an older adult, at that.

"You lying son of a bitch!" she shouted at him, tears in her eyes. "I'd never work for you, you coward! You made me go in that awful machine and it messed me up! I could've died!"

Robotnik's eyes lit up with keen interest. "Is that so?"

His gaze never left Alex; though when Roman attempted to crawl away, Robotnik snapped his fingers and the henchman called Sage seized Roman by the back of his shirt and yanked him back.

"Are you the one I spoke to?" asked Robotnik, his eyes still on Alex. "The one who helped me open the passage between two worlds?" His grin broadened. "It _was_ you, wasn't it? I suppose I have _you_ to thank for helping me find my way back to Earth at last."

Alex swallowed nervously. "Y-You're welcome...?" She slowly retreated until her back found the wall. Her hand was on her injured shoulder as she sidled towards the door. "I h-have to go home..."

For a wonder, it almost seemed like Robotnik was going to let her go. Perhaps her 'role' in helping him return to Earth had earned her clemency. Stark, still holding the couch high above his head, glanced between his master and the girl, wondering if he ought to stop her from leaving. But Robotnik gave no such command. But then...

"Master," said Sage. "I'm detecting traces of chaos energy. There's a Chaos Emerald here."

Robotnik spun towards the more civilized looking henchman. "What!? A Chaos Emerald? You're sure? Where!?"

Sage placed his fingers against his temple, his gaze slowly moving around the room until his eyes settled on Alex. "Right in front of us. The girl. The energy is coming from her."

Alex's gaped at him in disbelief. "What?!"

And with that, she was in Robotnik's crosshairs once more.

"Stark!"

The larger henchman grinned wickedly and dropped the couch lengthwise in front of the door, blocking her exit.

Alex gasped and jumped back. Her eyes moved from the blocked doorway to the bulky henchman, and finally to the handsome henchman (as she'd personally dubbed him), who had raised such an accusation against her.

"I do _not_ have a Chaos Emerald," she insisted. Alex didn't know why this man... robot... seemed to think she had one, but if she wanted them to let her leave, she had to convince them he was mistaken.

Alex opened her satchel and dumped out the contents. A notebook, wallet, Midol, and other feminine products scattered across the floor. Then, she turned out her pockets.

"See?" she said, glaring at the long-haired henchman. "Where exactly would I be keeping one, jackass?"

Robotnik's gaze narrowed behind his dark lenses as he studied Alex and the stuff she'd dumped out. "Sage... are you certain about your readings?"

"Of course, Master. The energy signature is definitely chaos energy. And it's definitely coming from her. But deeper scans indicate... the energy isn't coming from a specific point. It's simply coming from within her being. She _is_ the origin point."

"Wh-What does that mean?" Alex stammered.

Whatever it was, it didn't sound good.

Robotnik stared at Alex, looking somewhere between shocked and curious. "You _were_ the one who was the receptor for my Dreamcaster signal. Which means... you were Ground Zero for Chaos Control." Robotnik's mouth curled into a wicked grin. "Sage, Stark... It looks like we'll be taking _two_ prisoners with us."

Alex felt a pit open up in her stomach. She felt sick, like she'd either throw up or that fear might stop her heart. She clutched at her injured shoulder, wincing as she leaned her head against the wall and closed her eyes. She drew a deep, ragged sob.

"P-Please," she whimpered. "I just wanna go home. Please..."

She felt a pulse of pain in her head. At first, she thought it was from the cut on her forehead, but the pain continued, deeper and stronger, and she recognized it as yet another migraine episode from her time spent in the REMgage. As her pain increased, she began to flicker. But Alex never noticed.

"I should've just stayed in bed today," she whimpered, hugging herself as she began to hyperventilate. "I never should've come here. I've got a paper due on Thursday and a swim meet on Friday, and I can't afford to go on academic probation. And if I miss the swim meet, I'll lose my scholarship. And I'm supposed to see Mom this weekend, and if I don't, she'll be worried sick. I just can't... I c-can't get k-kidnapped now..."

The doctor and his minions gaped as the girl continued to fade in and out, but no one was more shocked and alarmed than Edgar Roman.

"W-What the hell??" he exclaimed. "What the hell is happening here?!"

"Master," said Sage, "the chaos energy inside her... it's beginning to rise. It's growing more powerful."

Robotnik was in awe. This young woman _was_ generating Chaos energy!

"Sage! An energy dampening shield! Do we have one?"

But the voice that responded wasn't Sage. Instead, it was the last one that Robotnik wanted to hear right now.

"If anything is getting dampened today, it's gonna be those slick, Kevlar tights of yours, Eggman!"

Robotnik's eyes widened. "No... IT CAN'T BE! You can't be here!"

All eyes turned toward the blown-out exterior wall where the veranda once stood.

"SONIC!" cried Alex, the sight of whom caused Edgar Roman to promptly faint.

At the arrival of her hero, Alex immediately stopped flickering and the chaos energy instantly plummeted. She burst into tears of relief and ran towards him.

"Stark! Stop her!"

Stark spun towards Alex and thrust a meaty hand out to seize her by the back of the head. Gritting his teeth, Sonic turned into a spiny blue ball of kinetic energy and launched himself at Stark. The hulking henchman's fingers barely grazed Alex's hair as Sonic slammed himself into the side of the crony's head.

"Dgaaah!!!"

Stark flew backwards as Sonic repelled off of him and unrolled, doing a back flip in the air before landing in a crouch. The henchman was down, but seemed remarkably unscathed for just having had a speedy spike-ball slammed against his head. Perhaps they really were robots. That would explain the strange glowing markings on their faces.

Sonic planted himself protectively in front of Alex, shielding her from Robotnik and his minions. Robotnik glared daggers at the hedgehog.

"How is it that even here on Earth I can't be free of you, you blasted rodent!?"

Sonic grinned mockingly at Robotnik. "I guess you're just a lucky, lucky, guy, Eggman."

"You shouldn't have come here, hedgehog. You don't stand a chance in this world. You can't just roam freely. This is _my_ world. I have free reign over it. But you... here, you're a monstrosity. An alien. An unknown factor. And humans don't take kindly to the unknown around here."

Sonic's eyes narrowed as he glared at Robotnik. "You make it sound like I'm gonna let myself get caught. I got news for you, pal. They're gonna have to be pretty quick to catch me."

Alex glanced nervously between Sonic and Robotnik. This was the ultimate face-off. Surely her fate rested on the winner. But the battle never came. Instead, the sound of police and fire sirens filled the air. Alex glanced out the window. In the distance, she saw a squad of police cars and a fire truck turning the corner, headed for Roman's estate. She turned back towards Sonic, eyes wide and fearful.

"S-SONIC! WE NEED TO LEAVE... LIKE... NOW!"

Robotnik grinned as he hit a command button on his glove. "With my help, they'll catch you and have you strapped to a lab table for dissection in no time, hedgehog."

Several of Robotnik's hovering laser eye drones flew into the room. Small hatches opened up on each, revealing the drones were armed and ready to fire at his command. It would seem there was no easy way out of this. Alex whimpered as Sonic's green eyes flicked around, quickly assessing the situation. Robotnik, Sage, and Stark were blocking the one obvious means of escape, and the large hole where a pair of glass doors had once led onto the veranda was covered by the gunner drones. They were in quite a jam.

Sonic supposed Alex was right. On one hand, delaying and stalling for time to allow the authorities to find Robotnik sounded like a good plan. But not only would that put himself at risk of being caught by the humans, it would also put the lives of the human authorities in danger. Finally, Sonic made his choice.

The armed drones were slowly closing in on them, lasers at the ready. Alex whimpered.

"Alex..." said Sonic, tensing.

"Y-Yeah?"

Sonic launched from the floor, balled up, and blasted through the two closest drones, sending metal debris flying. Alex cried out and covered her head from flying projectiles. When she lowered her arms, Sonic was at her side. One arm went to the small of her back and the other found the back of her knees.

"S-Sonic!" she cried when she realized what he intended to do. "You're half my size! There's no way you can—"

But defying all logic, Sonic scooped her off of her feet and into his arms.

"Hang on to me!"

"GET THEM!!" Robotnik commanded.

Stark barreled towards Sonic and Alex. Sonic spun around and ran towards the window with Alex in his arms.

"Oh God, oh God! Sonic, no! Oh, please! Oh God... ARE YOU SERIOUS? I DON'T WANT TO DIE LIKE THIS!"

The remaining drones turned to track Sonic. They fired at him as he zipped by. Alex continued to scream as certain death came at them from every angle. But for Sonic, those bullets were moving in slow motion. They hardly even came close to grazing him. Sonic launched himself and Alex out the window. Alex screamed and clutched tightly to Sonic, burying her face against his neck.

"HAIL MARY... HOLEEEE SHIIIIIT!!!"

For a moment, they were airborne. Sonic landed on the wing of Robotnik's hovercraft and ran along the top of the vehicle as the drones continued to fire.

"NO!" roared Robotnik. "DON'T SHOOT MY CRAFT! DAMN YOU, SONIC!"

Sonic leapt off of the surface of the vehicle and dropped several feet down to the grass below, still carrying the screaming girl. He took off at full speed across the back lawn, and in the blink of an eye, he was out of sight.

Robotnik continued to glare through the gaping hole, even after they were long gone, his teeth clenched and his hands tucked behind his back.

"I didn't get them," said Stark.

"That much is plainly obvious, dullard."

"Master," said Sage. "The authorities will be arriving fast. The sirens are quickly approaching."

Robotnik shook his head. "This has all been a disaster. Sonic's presence here certainly complicates things. However, I have what I came for." He turned around to face his minions. "Sage! Stark! Grab Roman and make sure the Mechas take as much equipment as they can. It's time to leave."

The henchmen bowed their heads and left to do as their master bade them. Robotnik turned back towards the veranda to board his craft, but hesitated when he spotted the girl's wallet on the floor where she'd dumped her belongings. He plucked it up, holding it in one hand and her medical records in the other. The light flashed across his dark lenses as his lips curled into a wicked grin.

"Alexandra Parker... My business with you is _far_ from over."


	8. Chapter 8

Alex had long since screamed herself hoarse by the time Sonic set her back to her feet in front of the van. Her hair was a tousled mess as she fumbled in her pocket for the car keys. On the third try, she finally managed to free them, unlocked the car, and started the ignition. With a squeal of tires, Alex threw the shift into reverse and made an illegal U-turn, just narrowly avoiding side-swiping a parked vehicle as she guided the car out of the swanky suburban neighborhood and onto the highway.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit..." she repeated through clenched teeth as she put pedal to metal. "Oh my God... Are they following us? _Please_ tell me they're not following us!"

Alex was a mess. Not just her hair, but there were tear streaks on her sooty cheeks, a trail of blood from a cut on the side of her head, and a hole in her denim jacket where Sonic could see a shiny raw burn on her shoulder. Her eyes kept blurring with tears, which she fiercely and repeatedly wiped away only for more to take their place.

Sonic hadn't said a word the entire way from Roman's estate to the car, but once they were on the highway, he looked at Alex with a concerned frown.

"Alex, are you okay? How bad are you hurt?"

But she merely shook her head. "I-I couldn't do it. I was so close. I-I almost got Mr. Roman to g-grant me access to the REMgage. E-Everything was working out. I had him fooled. W-We could've... But then... but then... outta nowhere..."

Alex shook her head, tears streaming down her cheeks. Then, her eyes went wide and she looked at Sonic in a panic.

"M-My wallet! My medical records! They're back at Roman's estate! Th-That means... R-Robotnik..." She bought a hand to her mouth. "I-I think I'm gonna be sick."

She shook her head, as though trying to fight off the feeling. For a moment, it seemed like she'd gotten ahold of herself. But then...

"Nn-nn. Nope... I'm gonna puke." She took an exit ramp and pulled off onto the shoulder of the road. Then, she opened the driver's side door, leaned out and threw up.

Sonic winced. He supposed he couldn't blame her. Everything she'd just been through was likely traumatizing for her. Her life had been in danger. Robotnik's drones had been firing live ammunition at them. This girl had probably never had anything like that happen to her in her life. She was so sure that her plans were going to work. But now, everything was ruined. And not only that, all her personal stuff was left behind at Roman's place.

Sonic moved over to the driver's seat of the car and sat on the edge of it, his feet dangling above the roadside. Once Alex had expelled the contents of her stomach, she rose back up, wiping her mouth with the back of her sleeve.

"Alex," said Sonic. "Maybe I should just go find Robotnik and try to put whatever he's scheming to an end. You shouldn't even be involved in all this. Let me go find out just where he's hiding and take him down. Then, everything will be alright and you can just go back to living your regular life."

Alex spun towards him, her eyes wide. "Wh-What? NO! You can't do that! It's too risky! You've got to be really strategic about this! You can't go off half-cocked! I hate to say it, but Robotnik was right when he said the people of this world can't handle the unknown and that they'd capture you and... and..." She shook her head, unable or unwilling to finish the thought. "B-Besides, he said I was at Ground Zero of Chaos Control and that there was some sort of c-chaos energy coming from me. I-I don't know what that means, but he seemed interested, and whatever it was, it made him want to take me _and_ Roman, and I'm r-really scared! So you c-can't... c-can't..."

For a moment, Alex couldn't seem to get a deep enough breath. She was hyperventilating so badly she'd begun to go pale. Almost see-through. Wait... She was see-through! She was flickering, just like she did the first night he'd met her when she'd begged him to stay.

"S-So please... You c-can't... you can't l-leave me!"

Alex's fluctuations were getting worse and only now, for the first time, she seemed to realize it herself as she gazed down at her hands and gasped.

"Wh-What's happening to me?!" She looked at Sonic, and he could see how terrified she was. "S-Sonic, What's happening to me?"

Alex was losing it. The fear, the anxiety, the headaches, the pain... It was overwhelming and consuming her, and as a result, the chaos energy inside her was ramping up. She didn't know what to do. All she knew was that she desperately did not wish to be alone. She began to cry.

"P-Please... Please help me..."

Sonic's eyes went wide. If she was full of chaos energy, her emotions were likely causing it to react. Sonic didn't have a head for any scientific theory, but he'd felt chaos energy before. He closed his eyes and placed his gloved hands on either side of her face and pressed his forehead against hers.

"Breathe Alex. The energy inside you... I've felt it before. You can't let it control you. You can take a hold of it and just... breathe."

Alex took a deep shuddering breath and closed her eyes, doing as he said. Slowly, she breathed in and out, matching her pace to his until they were even. Her headache was slowly dissipating. The flickering stopped. Alex opened her eyes.

"Sonic..." she said tremulously. "I'm trying to keep it together, but I'm scared. Please... promise you won't leave me? At least until... until this... whatever it is... is over? I don't want to be alone like this."

Sonic opened his eyes, and his green gaze met hers. Alex's eyes were so, so big. Had she always been so pale? Earlier that morning, she'd been a totally 'take charge' kind of girl. But right now, she seemed so frightened, so weak and helpless. He supposed a nasty brush with that ol' Eggman could do that to someone. And in Alex's world, at least until now, such an idea seemed impossible.

"Hey... No sweat, Alex. You can't get rid of me so easily." He lowered his hands from her cheeks and rested them on her upper arms, pulling away just slightly to get a good look at her. "I promise you... until this is all over and done with, I'm with you 'til the end. I mean, that's what friends do, right? They have each other's backs."

The relief that washed over her face was palpable. Sonic could tell just by looking in her eyes how much it meant to her. Alex sniffled and wiped at her tears. She nodded, managing a smile for him.

The rest of the drive passed in silence. Although it had not been a long trip to North Lake City from Scottstown, the trip back took the better part of the day. Alex was going a round-about way, refusing to go back the same route they'd taken, and often backtracking on purpose, all in the name of 'throwing Robotnik off the scent,' just in case. Any time Sonic gently suggested she was being paranoid, she simply pursed her lips and shook her head, and the sight of her eyes welling with anxious tears was enough to silence him.

The drive back was very quiet. Alex hardly spoke at all. If it wasn't for the Switch, Sonic might have gotten bored, but he was already on his way to becoming a bit of a gamer. Only once did Alex turn on the radio to hear the news.

"Shortly after noon today, the estate of tech giant, Edgar Roman, of Centurion Technologies went up in flames. Reports of an explosion were confirmed by what looks to be the work of military-grade weapons."

Alex's hands tightened on the steering wheel until her knuckles turned white, waiting with baited breath to hear the words, _'Medical documents and identification belonging to one Alexandra Parker were discovered at the scene of the crime. Alexandra Parker is a student at Scottstown University and is considered to be armed and dangerous. If seen, please proceed with caution and call local authorities immediately.'_

Fortunately, no such words were spoken. Instead: "Eye witnesses claim to have seen a small aircraft of unknown design and what folks are calling 'scary-looking robots,' or 'highly advanced automatons' ransacking the estate, which also serves as headquarters for Centurion Technologies. Authorities are yet uncertain what all was stolen, but have determined that it appears to be the work of a terrorist organization. Owner and CEO of Centurion Technologies, Edgar Roman, is also reported missing."

Alex shivered and turned off the radio. At the very least, no one had found her belongings, which was a relief, as it meant she was not a suspect in the attack. However, it was not as big of a relief as she would have liked, because if her things weren't found by the authorities... then that meant only one thing. Robotnik had taken them. And Alex did not like the implications of that. Not at all.

Dusk was settling over Scottstown when Alex pulled the mini-van into her aunt's driveway. She placed the car keys in the mailbox and texted her aunt, telling her they were there. Then, to Liam, she texted, _Your Switch is in the glove compartment._ Then, she booked it before her aunt or cousin could come out to investigate.

Sonic was back in the hoodie and jeans. With the sun down, it was easier to keep his face hidden. He and Alex arrived at the bus stop just in time to catch the last bus to campus. The entire ride back to the college, though her expression gave nothing away but a grim determination, Sonic could feel Alex trembling next to him.

When they arrived back at her apartment, Alex made him something called 'ramen' for supper, offering a mumbled apology that she didn't have anything better, but promising to go grocery shopping the next day. Alex, however, declined supper and excused herself, citing a headache and fatigue, and so she closed herself up in her bedroom. Sonic didn't wish to disturb her or invade her space, but whenever he pressed his ear to the door, he could hear her crying softly.

Sonic felt awful for Alex. And for all of his speed and special powers and abilities, he felt absolutely helpless when it came to the pain she was feeling after today. That girl didn't deserve to be mixed up in all this. Sonic wished he could just go out, foil whatever Robotnik was planning, and be done with it so Alex could get on with her normal life. Of course, if that happened, it meant _he_ would likely be out of her life, too. And when he considered that, he found that idea made him kind of sad.

He liked Alex. She was a cool girl, and he enjoyed her company. But what he didn't want was for her to keep hurting the way she was. Sonic was determined. He _would_ figure out what Robotnik was up to and he'd stop it. No matter what.

The night wore on, and Sonic did his best to keep himself occupied. Thank the lucky stars this planet had so many great video games. Otherwise, the time cooped up alone would have been unbearable for him. At least this way he was able to keep himself entertained.

Meanwhile, Alex was alone in her room, feeling horribly tired. But no matter how desperately she wanted to sleep, she was unable to do anything but stare at the ceiling. Her thoughts were a whirlwind. She'd been so close to getting access to the REMgage. She had been so certain she was Sonic's answer to getting him safely back home. But then Robotnik came out of nowhere and ruined everything. Robotnik, who somehow knew Edgar Roman.

Perhaps she shouldn't be surprised. After all, if the REMgage combined with the Chaos Emeralds was what got Sonic and Robotnik here in the first place, and it _was_ Robotnik's voice who spoke to her while she was in the machine, then maybe she should've foreseen the possibility that Robotnik would show up. But she'd been naïve in her over-confidence. She was so determined to play the hero alongside Sonic, and look what it got her.

Robotnik had attempted to kidnap her alongside Roman, and if it wasn't for Sonic, that's exactly what would have happened – all because she'd been at ground zero for Chaos Control, as Robotnik had put it. Luckily, with Sonic's help, she managed to give Robotnik the slip. But she wondered if it was all for naught. After all, Robotnik had her medical records _and_ her wallet.

Alex tried to go over in her mind what all was in there and how likely it was that Robotnik could use any of it against her. There was her credit card, but Alex was pretty sure such petty thievery was beneath the great Dr. Robotnik. Besides, it would be easy enough to cancel her credit card and order a new one. She'd go to the bank first thing tomorrow morning. The biggest inconvenience was that she'd have to take out enough cash to last her the rest of the week. A pain, but doable.

Then, there was her driver's license. That was the most concerning thing for Robotnik to have. But on second thought, Alex recalled that the address was outdated. She hadn't updated it since she and her mother moved out of their old house after her father passed away. So, if Robotnik tried to track her down that way, he'd be unsuccessful. If he _did_ go to the address, Alex hoped he wouldn't cause problems for the people living there currently. But odds were when he discovered there was nothing there for him, he'd leave them be. She'd just have to handle the driver's license the same way as the credit card.

That just left her medical records. But what could he possibly do with them? Perhaps it was nothing to worry about after all. But then, Alex recalled that her student ID was also in her wallet. On a small scale, it meant she couldn't get free bus rides or make use of her meal plan until she got a new one. On a much larger scale, it meant Robotnik knew where she attended college! This knowledge threatened to send Alex into hysterics once more. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, doing her best to talk herself down.

_Calm down, Alex. It may seem really bad, but the good news is your student ID doesn't have your address on it. All it says is that you're a student here, and Scottstown University is a big campus. It won't be_ that _easy to find you. And besides, Sonic's your roommate. You're as safe as you can possibly be, given the circumstances._ And with that reassurance in mind, Alex finally drifted off into a fitful sleep.

She couldn't be certain how long she'd slept when she awoke from a nightmare; a nightmare full of menacing robots, missile-laden hovercrafts, explosions, and a lone figure walking slowly out of the smoke, light glinting off dark glasses and a sinister smile.

She shot up in bed, heart pounding, gasping for breath. Wiping cold sweat from her brow, Alex went to the bathroom and washed her face with a cool rag. Then, she went to the kitchen and made herself some tea.

In the living room, Sonic was playing the Genesis. When Alex saw him sitting there in the dark with his back propped against the couch and a controller in his hands, her heart went out to him. He was so horribly cooped up in here, and only because she insisted upon it. Her reasons were valid, but it must be agony for him. And yet, he'd found a way to occupy himself. But still, he _could_ have left. Nothing was physically stopping him, but he'd stayed... because he promised her. Alex flipped on a lamp, bathing the living room in a soft, warm glow.

"Hey," Sonic greeted her, not taking his eyes away form the television screen. It seemed like he was trying to work his way through all of her father's old Genesis games.

"Don't you ever sleep?" asked Alex.

"I sleep when I need to," he said simply.

Alex took a seat on the floor beside him and rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry," she said softly.

Sonic paused the game and tilted his head towards her. "Huh? Sorry? For what?"

Alex sighed, nursing her lavender tea in one hand and a mug of hot cocoa in the other, her head still resting on his shoulder. "I'm not much of a heroine, am I? I wanted so badly to help you. I still do. But I just... I freaked out. I thought I had everything figured out, and for a moment, it really did seem like I had it all under control. I was convinced I was going to single-handedly solve your problem and get you home. But I'm no hero. I totally lost it when Robotnik..."

She trailed off and shuddered.

"Silly as it was, I guess I was expecting a cartoon villain. Ya know, intimidating but mostly kinda goofy and eccentric. But Robotnik, the real Robotnik, was way scarier than I could have imagined. I guess he was just a little... _too_ real. I wasn't prepared for that, like, at all. And now I feel like I've made an absolute ass of myself in front of you, which is really awful because, you're, like, my childhood hero. I still want to help you, Sonic. I want to prove myself to you. I want to show you that I can help you and that you can trust me. But I don't know how I can do that now, after everything that's happened."

Sighing, she passed him the hot cocoa with marshmallows. "I don't think you can do this alone, Sonic. I think you need someone here on Earth; a friend, a guide, a fan who knows enough to be helpful... But someone brave. And maybe..." Alex took a shuddering breath, and the pitter-patter of tears began to fall on his shoulder. "Maybe I'm not that person."

Sonic set the mug aside, and put an arm across her shoulders. "Alex... What did you do before all of this happened? You were just a regular girl, right? You just tried to live your life the best you could, right? No one would've expected you to go toe to toe with a maniacal technophile. That kind of skill set shouldn't even be in your wheelhouse. Sadly, no amount of video games can prepare you for what real life has to offer. Robotnik _is_ dangerous. He's not a silly little mustachioed beach ball propped up on sticks."

Alex let out a giggle in spite of herself. Sonic smiled. He loved hearing her laugh. For a while there, he was worried he might never hear that sound again.

"Trust me," he said, "I wish he was. Then, all of our lives would be a lot easier. What I'm getting at is... none of this should be happening to you. But the shitty truth of the matter is that it _is_ happening. And you're as involved in all of this as I am. Even if I did seek out someone else to help me, I couldn't just leave you behind. With that chaos energy in you, you need the help of someone who knows how to handle that stuff. And I don't see anyone else lining up for _that_ task." Sonic gave her an honest smile, one that showed her that he truly cared about her. "And not only that... but we're friends, Alex. And I won't abandon a friend who needs my help."

Alex chewed her lip to keep from smiling like a jackass. She was just so happy to hear him say that.

"We're in this together, Alex. No matter what. We'll figure out a way to get this chaos energy out of you, or at least under control. And then..."

Sonic picked up his mug of his hot cocoa and held it towards Alex. "We'll figure out what that ol' Eggman is up to and I'll trash his plans, right?"

Alex grinned and she clinked her mug against his. "Yeah," she said, "Let's do it to it!"

Together, they took a sip from their mugs. While Sonic was still taking a long swig of his hot cocoa, Alex leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. Sonic's eyes widened in surprise, and he lowered his mug, gazing somewhat dumbfoundedly at her. Alex laughed at his expression.

"I just figured that hug I owed you got upgraded to a kiss, seeing that you rescued me and all. And I gotta admit..." She lowered her gaze, smiling and chewing her lip. "Even though _that_ part was scary, too... getting rescued like that... it was pretty cool. Sort of an every-girl's-dream kind of thing, getting rescued by her hero."

Sonic held himself a little bit higher, puffing out his chest. "Well, it's what I do, right?"

"I just wish I was less, you know, _terrified_ at the time, to truly enjoy it. Anyway..." She returned her gaze to him, and what he saw there was nothing less than determination. "I'll return the favor by helping you in any way I can, no matter how scary things get. Deal?"

"You got it! And maybe you can start by helping me beat this crazy game!"

Alex laughed. He was playing Sonic Spinball. Not the simplest of Sonic games, that was for sure.

"All right, scoot over," she said, grabbing the controller from him. "The first thing you need to do is forget everything you know about the previous games' mechanics. You're a pinball now, so you've got to do everything differently."

***

When Alex's alarm went off the next morning, she awoke, half-sitting, resting her head atop Sonic's, while Sonic was slouched, fast asleep and snoring with the Genesis controller in his lap.

"Shit!"

Alex leapt to her feet.

"Aw man, I can't believe I stayed up all night playing that silly game. You're turning out to be a bad influence, Sonic."

Sonic watched, bleary-eyed as Alex scrambled to get ready. She ran to her bedroom, put on the first set of clothes she found, and hastily brushed her hair. She grabbed a granola bar and a protein shake and downed them in record speed. Then, she tossed Sonic a box of cereal. It was a good thing he had fast reflexes; otherwise, tired as he was, he might not have caught it.

"Milk's in the fridge, bowl's in the cupboard, spoons are in the silverware drawer which is next to the stove. I've got three classes and some errands to run today, so stay inside and try not to get into mischief," she said, slinging her messenger bag over her shoulder and running for the door. "I'll have a surprise for you when I come home, but you have to promise to be good, okay?"

Sonic the Sleepy Hedgehog rubbed his eyes and nodded. "Yeah. Totally. I promise."

When Alex went out the door, leaving Sonic to his own devices, he sat silently for a moment and yawned. Then, glancing down at the box of cereal in his hands, he gave his head a little shake.

"Wait... What was all that about? What'd I promise to do?"

***

For once, Patrick Miller was early to math class. He was just that eager to see Alex Parker again. Now that they had properly met, maybe they could talk more. And maybe, just maybe Patrick could invite her to study, like he'd intended to on the bus.

While he waited for Alex to show up, there was quite a bit of class chatter about what happened at the Starlight Gaming Convention and the apparent terrorist attack at Centurion Technologies. More than one student mentioned that they thought Alex Parker, the girl who usually sat in the front of their math class, was the girl who'd been injured at the convention by the REMgage machine, and tasteless jokes were made that perhaps _she_ was the one who blew up Edgar Roman's estate in an act of vengeance.

Patrick looked at the clock. Speaking of Alex, where was she? Her absence certainly didn't help provide a good alibi. But, of course, the idea that Alex Parker had anything to do with what happened at Centurion Technologies was laughably ridiculous. Much to his disappointment, class started without any sign of her.

Alex arrived several minutes late, which was unusual for her, enough so that the professor gave her a look of concern but didn't chastise her. What was even more peculiar, however, was that she did not take her usual seat at the front of the class. Instead, she chose a seat at the second to the last table in the back of the lecture hall. Alex slumped into her chair, earning her a few cursory looks from her fellow classmates. She looked unusually exhausted. Patrick leaned forward and whispered to her.

"Hey... Alex. Are you okay?"

Alex glanced back at him. At first, he feared she didn't recognize him. But that wasn't the look. It was more a look of utter exhaustion and confusion – not wrought by him, but by a clear lack of sleep. Alex, who seemed unusually pale, smiled weakly at him.

"Oh, y-yeah. I just stayed up too late. That's all. Thanks... uh... Patrick, right?"

But despite her insistence that she was merely tired, there was a noticeable cut on her right temple, and just beneath her scoop-neck shirt, over the left shoulder was a conspicuous bandage secured by Micropore medical tape. Just what had happened to her? The last time he saw her, she was going somewhere with her little brother. Were they in an accident? Was her brother okay? But Patrick didn't get a chance to ask any questions during class .

Throughout Pelonski's lecture on quadratics and derivatives, Patrick could see Alex continuously nodding off, only to jerk her head up to forced alertness. The theoretical part of the lesson over, Pelonski turned down the lights and put some equations onto the projection screen. The darkness of the classroom and the dim lighting of the projector acting like a nightlight was too heavy a cocktail for Alex. She could barely keep awake.

_Man,_ she thought drowsily she rested her head on her arms. _I could really go for a coffee right about now._

When the lights came back on and Patrick glanced to where Alex had been sitting, she was nowhere to be found. All that remained was her textbook. Where had she gone? And how did he not notice her leaving?

***

"Miss? Miss...? Ahem, Miss!"

Alex snapped to.

"Huh?"

She was staring into the somewhat irritated face of a young woman wearing a green visor and matching apron. Her blonde hair was piled in a messy top knot bun and she was gazing at Alex with raised eyebrows.

"I _said_ , what can I get you?"

Alex glanced around her. Just a moment ago, she was nodding off in Professor Pelonski's math class. Now, somehow, she was in the coffee shop at the student center.

But how?

"Miss?" the girl repeated, tapping her long neon orange fingernails impatiently atop the counter.

"O-Oh. Um... j-just a hazelnut latte with a double shot of espresso, please," stammered Alex, fishing in her satchel for her money.

Thank goodness she had some cash on her. Most noticeably missing, however, was her Calculus textbook. Alex forked over the dough and took her latte to a small table by the window. Every time she tried to lift the cup to her lips, she had to set it back down. Her hands were trembling far too badly.

How had this happened? The last thing she remembered was falling asleep in Calculus, thinking it would be nice to have a coffee. Could she possibly have chaos controlled herself here subconsciously? God, she hoped no one in class saw her disappear like that! Perhaps she should skip the rest of her day's classes and go straight home and tell Sonic what happened.

But what was _he_ supposed to do about it? He said he'd help her, but could he stop her from chaos controlling herself? Besides, after the talk they had last night, Alex really wanted to show more competency. She wanted to be someone Sonic didn't have to worry about. She wanted to be an asset, not a liability. Perhaps she'd keep this little stunt to herself, at least until she was given more reason for concern. Besides, she'd missed enough class as it was due to her recent hospital stay and her excursion yesterday. She couldn't afford to miss any more.

With a heavy dose of espresso flowing through her blood stream combined with the fear that she might accidentally chaos control herself somewhere else, Alex found the strength to attend the rest of her classes without falling asleep.

Later that day, when Alex returned to her apartment with two bags of groceries, she was relieved to see Sonic was still there. He was sitting upside-down with his legs up against the back of the couch and his feet bopping in the air. He held a Genesis controller in his hands, apparently so bored that he had decided to switch things up a bit and play video games in this unorthodox position.

"Hey," she greeted, trying not to sound as tired as she felt. "Remember yesterday how I told you I'd make you a home-cooked meal to celebrate our success? Well, I know we weren't very successful, but as a thank-you for saving my ass yesterday, I figured I'd make you a gratitude meal in place of a celebratory one."

"Hey! That doesn't sound bad at all. I'm starving."

She set the grocery bags on the kitchen table and began emptying them – a block of cheese, a pack of hot dogs, a can of chili, a red onion, and crescent roll dough.

"How about a chili dog casserole? And _please_ don't tell me you've never have had a chili dog before or I will seriously cry."

It wasn't until she said the words 'chili dog casserole,' that Sonic tossed the controller aside.

"CHILI DOGS?!" He did a spin into the air and leapt over the back of the couch before meeting her at the table. "You're gonna make chili dogs? Oh man! _Now_ I'm stoked! I haven't had a chili dog in a good while!"

Well, that answered _that_ question. No need for tears.

"I'm _really_ glad to hear that," she laughed. "Hopefully you'll like this, though. It's a bit unique. It's actually my dad's recipe."

Sonic hopped onto one of the chairs at the table as Alex took out a glass baking pan and began layering it with crescent dough and chili.

"When I was eight-years-old, I wanted a Sonic-themed birthday party," she explained as she began cutting up the hot dogs and mixing them in with the chili. "So, naturally, we had to have the food to match, right? Your love for chili dogs has always been kind of a character quirk. That was introduced in the American cartoons back in the '90s, but eventually even Sega started embracing the idea. I guess that's one thing they got right, huh?"

"Mm-hmm." Sonic felt his stomach growling as she sprinkled the cheese and chopped onions on top.

"So, Dad came up with 'Chili Dog Casserole,' and it was a big hit. I guess at this point you could call it a bit of a family recipe." Alex briefly stopped what she was doing, a faraway gaze in her eyes and a wistful smile on her face. "That was the best birthday party ever," she said softly.

Sonic loved the sound of it. Though he couldn't help but glimpse the melancholy expression on her face. Sonic placed his hand gently upon her arm.

"You really miss your dad, huh? He sounds like he was a lot of fun to be around. I guess it's him I have to thank for the fact that you turned out to be so cool."

Alex smiled. There was a bittersweet look in the way her eyes shined. "Aww. Sonic... _you're_ the cool one! And way past sweet, too," she added, with a tender smile. "Man, I _so_ wish Dad could've met you. He was a fan long before I was even born."

Sonic still had to wrap his mind around the strange time difference between his world and Alex's. She was saying that her late dad loved Sonic before Alex was even born. Sonic was two years younger than Alex. So, her dad loved him before _he_ was even born. Sonic supposed that, sometimes, science could be really stupid.

Alex carefully placed the casserole in the oven and set the timer. "Oh, you know what? I should totally show you something."

She ran into her bedroom and when she returned, she had a scrapbook filled with pictures, movie ticket stubs, and all kinds of memorabilia. She set it on the table in front of Sonic and turned to a section of photos early in the book.

"There's my dad," she said, pointing to a man in his late 20s with messy blonde hair and glasses.

Sonic had already seen a picture of this man in the box labeled 'Dad's Sonic Shit,' but here he was again, and this time with a little Alex who was, quite amusedly, wearing a headband with a pair of yellow fox ears. And hanging behind her back were two makeshift yellow tails sewn together out of cloth and stuffing. Sonic unsuccessfully suppressed a laugh.

"Oh God," said Alex, sliding her hand down her face in embarrassment. "I forgot I wore that."

In that same picture, a woman with brown hair like Alex's, but long and wavy, presumably her mother, was attempting to pin the tails in a more proper fashion. In another picture, Alex and a bunch of other children were hovering over a large birthday cake with a familiar blue, smirking face that Sonic recognized very well.

"My parents got me a Sonic cake," she said, half proud, half embarrassed. "I felt like the coolest kid in school."

Sonic looked up at Alex with a playful grin. "Heh. Well, it looks like, in a weird way, we've _always_ been friends, Alex. Looks to me like I helped make your childhood a lot of fun!"

"Yeah!" said Alex. "That's totally how I feel!" She blushed and averted her gaze, embarrassed over her enthusiastic outburst. "My childhood would've definitely been rough without you and Dad," she said, speaking of him as though he were a living fixture in her life right along with her father back in the day. "What with mom always in poor health, and the kids at school... I got bullied a lot. But you and Dad were always there for me," she said with a smile.

Sonic seemed to be enthralled with the scrapbook as he flipped through it, and Alex felt quite pleased, and maybe even a little prideful. But as Sonic slowly turned through the pages of her scrapbook, his smile gradually slipped into a frown.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Well... It just seems nice is all. Ya know, to have all this," he gestured to the pictures spread out before him. "I guess childhoods are supposed to be like this."

"You say that like yours wasn't. So, uh, what _was_ it like?" she asked.

" _My_ childhood? It was... complicated, actually."

"Do you want to talk about it?" she ventured tentatively. "I-I mean, not because I'm insanely curious, though I am, but just... I don't know. I thought maybe, if you want to vent... Of course, you don't have to if you don't want to," she said quickly, holding up her hands as though warding off any misunderstanding. "I just figured you've listened to me and all my sad crap, so I thought maybe I could return the favor... That is, if you want."

Sonic leaned back in the chair, putting his hands behind his head. "Well... For starters, I don't know where I truly come from. See, when I was little, I just kinda woke up one day. I didn't have any family. No parents. No brothers and sisters. Nothing. I just woke up, all alone. And the first thing I realized when I was all alone... was that I was fast! Super fast! So, I just ran... and ran... until I finally ran into someone. There was this old monk. He took me in and helped me understand my abilities. He was even was the one who first took to calling me Sonic. Monk was basically the only family I had back on Christmas Island."

Alex's eyebrows lifted. "Christmas Island... Wow, that's some obscure old-school origin stuff. Not that they really did anything with it except include it in a bio for you way back in the day."

Everything else he went on to tell her, however, was entirely new.

"Everything was cool with Monk. He taught me how to control my abilities and even how to fight. But one day, this wicked creep showed up on Christmas Island. He had all these freaky looking creatures under his control. And he wanted to control _me,_ too. He wanted my speed. My power. I was little. I didn't know what to do. Monk tried to fight him off, but..." Sonic's face skewed into an expression of anger. "He was killed trying to protect me. He told me to run. I hated to leave Monk behind. But I did as he said. I ran. I hid... until I saw that monster taking over the whole island and turning the people into weird creatures! That's when I decided that I couldn't just stand idly by and let that happen."

He leapt to his feet and stood on the chair, grinning triumphantly with a clenched fist as he appeared to get pumped over this recollection.

"So, I fought against that creep. I used everything Monk taught me. That ugly wizard wanted my power? I freakin' gave it to him! I sent that creepy bastard packing back to whatever shadow world he crawled out of and I set Christmas Island free!" But then, he sighed and slumped back into his seat. "But after that, there was nothing left for me on Christmas Island. So, I left for South Island and vowed never to let the influence of evil claim my world again!"

Alex had listened with wide eyes and jaw agape throughout his story. When he was finished, she shook her head in disbelief. "That's... some crazy shit. Nothing in Earth's Sonic lore comes close to any of that. That's... fascinating. But also, like, super horrible. It's a wonder you weren't totally traumatized by that forever." She placed her hand over his. "I'm sorry," she said softly.

Sonic's gaze flicked down to her hand atop his. There was the slightest of pinkish twinges on his cheeks, something he didn't let remain for long.

"Hey, it's okay. I'll never forget Monk and everything he taught me. But you can't get so hung up on the past that it keeps you from moving ahead. That's why I went to South Island and strove to become a hero." His gaze lowered briefly, as did his tone, which was rather quiet. "I'd like to think I've done Monk proud, though."

Alex blinked at him. "Are you kidding? You're a hero! In fact, you're an intergalactic, inter-dimensional hero! People from another _world_ know about you! You've _definitely_ made Monk proud." She placed a hand on his head and ruffled the short, soft blue fur there.

Sonic grinned and closed one eye. "Hey. Watch the quills, huh?" he teased.

"Besides," she said, "Parents are always proud of their kids. I'm sure Dad would be proud of me. It's sad he wasn't around to see me make it into college, but I know so long as I'm happy and living my best life, he'd be happy, too."

Just then the oven beeped.

"Oh! Looks like it's ready."

Alex put on a pair of oven mitts and carefully took the casserole out of the oven.

"Well, looks like I haven't burnt it. That's good. But _you'll_ be the _real_ test. If Sonic the Hedgehog likes my chili dog casserole, then I know it's good."

Sonic practically jumped up in his seat again. "Ooooh... That smells incredible! Hurry! I can't wait to try it!"

Alex set it down to cool as she gathered plates and glasses. "Sorry I don't have the best dishware. I had to buy it secondhand. A lot of it's cracked, but at least it's clean."

"Psh! Who cares about the dishware? Can't eat dishware."

Alex laughed as she proceeded to cut up the casserole, placing a slice on each of their plates and pouring them each a glass of water. "So what ever happened to that creepy old wizard guy?" she asked.

" _That_ guy? Don't know for sure. When I broke his curse on the island... he kinda vanished, taking all his monsters with him. I haven't seen any sign or suggestion of that creep since, especially not since Robotnik turned up."

"Well, at least _that guy's_ out of the way. One down, one to go, right?"

Sonic smirked. "That's the idea."

Finally, the table was set and Alex took a seat across from Sonic who was practically jumping and drooling in anticipation.

"Honest opinion, please," said Alex as she lifted her fork. "Don't pretend to like it just to avoid hurting my feelings. I haven't made it in a while, so hopefully it's okay."

Without further ado, Sonic grabbed a fork and went to town on it. Once he took his first bite, his eyes lit up. "Oh my God. I'm in heaven..."

Alex beamed with pride. "Really? You like it?"

"I'm serious," Sonic said with his mouth full. "This is way past good!"

"That's great! I know my cooking is good if it's got Sonic's stamp of approval. I used to cook for me and Mom all the time, but it's been a while since I've cooked much of anything for anyone," she said, taking a bite and relishing it. It really had turned out well. "Glad to know I'm still good at _something_ at least. Makes me feel a little like a housewife," she said with a giggle. Realizing what she'd said and how weird it sounded, she quickly amended. "But don't start thinking just because I can cook means I always subscribe to stereotypical gender roles. I'm quite tough when I want to be!" Alex flexed an arm muscle as though to prove this, but then she lowered it back down and sighed. "No, I'm not," she mumbled.

"Hey, I wouldn't expect you to just wait on me and make all my meals. Next time, _I'll_ put on the apron and make us some food."

Alex laughed, knowing he was just throwing a bit of levity her way. "I think I'd _pay_ to see you in an apron, Sonic."

For a while, they ate their casserole in silence, Sonic mostly due to utter enjoyment, but Alex had become pensive. Finally, without looking up from her plate, she said, "Sonic... What do you think Robotnik did with Edgar Roman?"

Sonic looked up from his casserole and tilted his head in thought. "I assume he took the guy with him. But as for why... That's the question. You said that they apparently knew each other, right? I doubt it was to invite him over for coffee and a card game."

"Well," said Alex, "He wanted vengeance, for one thing. From what I overheard, it sounds like they used to be business partners and Edgar Roman is the one who sent Robotnik to _your_ world in the first place. But if it was only for vengeance, I would've assumed he would have killed him then and there. There must be something else."

"Maybe Roman has something Robotnik wants."

"The REMgage, maybe? But..." Alex frowned. "Why would he want the thing that sent him to your world in the first place if he so badly wanted to return to Earth? I mean, he's back here where he wants to be. So, it doesn't make sense. There's a lot of unknowns here."

Alex became quiet again. For a time, she just sat in silence, twirling her fork through her casserole. Then, tremulously, she asked, "What do you think Robotnik was gonna do to _me_?"

Her question was so quiet it was almost a whisper. Sonic saw her wince as she asked it, as though she were too afraid to know, and yet desperately needed to.

Sonic's eyes narrowed and he shook his head. "Nothing good, that's for sure. None of us know the extent of the chaos energy inside of you. And it would definitely be better if Robotnik never found out."

For a moment, Alex considered telling him what had happened to her in class today, of how she'd accidentally and entirely unconsciously chaos-controlled herself out of class and to the coffee shop. But then she decided not to. She didn't want to worry him unnecessarily. Besides, if he felt he had reason to worry about her, he might insist on staying with her at all times, even following her to class.

That wasn't a good idea. It was one thing dressing up in Liam's clothes and putting the hood up for short jaunts, but sooner or later, he would be found out. She couldn't make him think he had to accompany her everywhere. They couldn't risk him being caught and imprisoned by the military. She recalled all too well what Robotnik had said the other day.

_'They'll catch you and have you strapped to a lab table for dissection in no time, hedgehog.'_

Alex suppressed a shiver. She mustn't let that happen to him, and that meant doing everything in her power to keep Sonic from doing something rash and exposing himself.

"I don't intend to let him _ever_ get his grubby hands on you, Alex," said Sonic, and this time it was he who placed his hand over hers. "I'll watch your back. You can count on me!"

Holding his gaze, Alex placed her other hand over his and smiled.

"I know."


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning, Alex awoke feeling refreshed. She'd gotten much more sleep, and she only had one class scheduled for today. That meant she could spend the rest of the afternoon hanging out with Sonic. But then came the phone call.

"Alex, it's Jess. Listen, can you cover my shift tonight?"

"Tonight?" asked Alex, crestfallen. "How late?"

"Till close."

"Till close? Jess, you know I'm not supposed to work till closing. I made that request very clear from the start."

"Please, Alex. Just this once? The baby's been throwing up and I need to take her to the doctor and Jackson is out of town, so he can't watch her."

Alex sighed. "Yeah... all right. You've got to take care of your kid, right?"

"Thanks a million, Alex! I owe you one!"

"Who else is working tonight?" asked Alex.

"Um... Courtney, I think."

Alex groaned and collapsed backwards onto the couch.

"Alex? Alex, you okay?"

"Freaking Courtney? You _really_ owe me big, Jess." Alex ended the call, her arm flopping off the couch and dropping the phone to the floor with a groan.

"Rough morning, huh?" came Sonic's voice, muffled behind the comic he was reading.

"Tell me about it," Alex lamented. "I have to work tonight. So there goes my free day. I thought we could hang out and stuff, but my coworker's baby is sick, and now I have to cover for her. I guess I'm not very good at saying no. But who can say no to a sick baby, right?"

She sat up and glanced over at Sonic. What she saw about broke her heart. He was sitting in one of the kitchen chairs, which he had dragged to a nearby window to soak up the sun. His face was hidden behind an old Archie Sonic comic book, but his foot was ticking and he hadn't turned the comic page in several minutes. His gaze kept drifting out the window, watching the sun glowing over another beautiful autumn day. He hadn't been outside since they returned from their encounter with Robotnik, and being cooped up inside was starting to make him stir crazy.

Alex chewed her lip. God, this was awful. It felt like she was keeping him prisoner. She couldn't do this to him. And yet, he couldn't go out. He just couldn't!

"Sonic..." she said slowly. "Am I horrible to you?"

Sonic lowered the comic book and gazed at her in surprise. "What? What are talking about?"

"I just... God, I know you want to go out, and I feel so bad for telling you that you can't! You understand why, though, right?"

Sonic frowned. Was he doing something that brought this on? He hadn't meant to make her worry about how she was treating him. Sonic didn't reply right away. Instead, he took a moment to assess the situation. It was then he realized just what might have brought it on.

"Alex, I wasn't trying to make you feel bad. I mean, I know why it's best that I stay in here. We don't want to attract any unwanted attention. I know that _you're_ handling my presence okay, but..." Sonic gazed out the window once more. "This isn't my world. I don't want to cause any trouble."

The wistful way he looked out the window caused Alex to burst into tears as she threw her arms around him. Sonic almost teetered off of his seat before regaining his balance.

"A-Alex..."

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I hate seeing you like this. It's not your fault! It really isn't! I wish I didn't have to be your prison warden. I feel just as wicked as Eggman."

Sonic shook his head in disbelief. "No... hey, don't say that."

Embarrassed by her outburst, Alex placed her hands on his shoulders and pulled away, holding him at arms' length and looking him in the eyes.

"Hey, maybe we can go out at night. You know, cover of darkness and all that. You can wear Liam's clothes again and we'll go out long after dark when it's really late. We can stretch our legs and get some exercise. Maybe that would be okay. In fact..." Her eyes seemed to light up. "I might even have an idea!"

The alarm on her phone sounded, signaling that class started in half an hour. Alex quickly released him and grabbed her things.

"Just hold out a little longer, Sonic," she said, throwing on her hoodie and slinging her satchel over her shoulder. "I'll have another surprise for you. Uh, though I'll be working late. I'll be back shortly after nine, okay? Anything you want in the fridge, it's yours. Okay? And if you go totally crazy and run around the apartment and destroy everything... that's okay, too. I won't blame you and I won't be mad. Do whatever you want as long as it's inside, okay? I'll make it up to you. Promise!"

And with that, she was gone. Sonic sat in his seat, just blinking at the closed door. For someone who wasn't _him_ , Alex sure had a habit of leaving in a hurry. Perhaps it was because she was always late for something.

***

North Lake Electronics was a local electronics retailer chain with two locations, one in North Lake City and the other in Scottstown, where Alex worked. It was just after 4:00 p.m. when Alex punched in, silently cursing babies and their penchant for illness. She could've spent the day with Sonic, but instead she was stuck at work till closing... with fucking Courtney! Courtney was the worst.

As it was a slow day at the Scottstown location, Courtney had stationed herself at the Customer Service desk where she could get away with doing the least amount of work. But that was okay with Alex. She was more than content to occupy herself with busywork. That always made the day go faster, plus it got her away from Courtney.

And it was thus the customer who entered the establishment later that afternoon came upon the scene of a modest, quiet electronics store with its scant employees. The tall, corpulent gentleman approached the customer service desk where a college-aged girl was manning the counter. She wore the North Lake Electronics navy-blue apron uniform over a light blue polo. Her long black hair, which was certainly not her natural color, hung disheveled about her face like she just didn't give a damn. Her most predominant features were the tattoo sleeves running up her arms and a single nose ring.

She was leaning over the counter lackadaisically, absorbed in playing a game on her phone, swiping with surprising dexterity given the long, false neon-purple fingernails she wore. Her name tag read _Courtney_.

"Excuse me, young lady."

Ever so slowly, as though it caused her physical pain to do so, the girl lifted her gaze from her phone and regarded the bald, mustachioed man.

"I require some assistance in finding a few items that I'm looking for. If I may... Alexandra is the one who helped me the last time I was here. Might she be working today?"

Courtney's eyes did a once-over him, taking in his long black jacket inlaid with red, matching driving cap, and dark sunglasses. A single eyebrow rose high on her forehead.

"ALEX! CUSTOMER!"

From a few aisles away, a voice called back.

"Courtney, could you _please_ handle it? I'm on the Ladder of Doom, for Christ's sake!"

A glance in that direction revealed the very girl he sought standing atop a ladder placing items on a high shelf. Her reference to 'the Ladder of Doom' instantly made sense, for the ladder on which she stood looked very old, rusted, and not at all in good shape. In fact, one of the steps was noticeably bowed. Someone had stuck a piece of paper on the side with the following words written in marker.

_Ladder of Doom: Management Pls Fix, Thx._

Uncaringly, Courtney called back, "The guy's asking for _you_ specifically!"

With a sigh, Alex glanced over her shoulder towards Courtney. When her gaze fell on the man in the coat, her eyes widened and she lost her balance. Her foot slid off the step and, with an "AHHHH SHIIIIT!" she slid feet-first down the ladder, her hands sliding down the sides to slow her descent, resulting in a nasty case of friction burn.

When Alex landed, she grabbed one hand in the other and, wincing, spun around, putting her back to them. She let out a painful mutter, something that sounded suspiciously like "Fuck!" before turning back around to face them. Courtney watched the entire ordeal with a bored expression before returning to her phone.

Alex couldn't believe it. He was here! The long black jacket, the driving cap, the sunglasses... None of it could conceal his identity from _her._

_Oh God! It's him! He's here! Why is he here? What does he want?_

Smiling through clenched teeth, Alex stammered tremulously, "Wh-What c-can I h-help you with today, sir?"

Slowly, Robotnik approached, noting the name tag on her apron, which said _Alex_ and beneath it the words, _Customer First_. His mustache arched as his lips curled into something of a mischievous smile.

_Customer first, eh?_

That meant she was completely at his mercy.

"Good day, Miss Parker. I was hoping perhaps you could help me with a small shopping list that I've compiled."

Alex's jaw dropped as though she couldn't quite comprehend that what he desired was something so simple. That's... really all he wanted?

Robotnik handed her the list. With trembling hands, Alex took it from him. It was printed out on 1980's era Dot Matrix printer paper. There was a whole list of items he was apparently looking for. DC gearhead motors, servo/sensor cables, power hubs, voltage dividers, and actuators, among many other items. It was a legit shopping list.

"Is there any chance you can help me find all of these?"

For a moment, Alex merely gaped at the paper. She didn't know what was more shocking - the paper or that Robotnik expected her to help him locate these items. Alex wanted to say no. She really, _really_ wanted to refuse him. But there was no way. At the least, she might lose her job; at worst... she'd piss him off, and _that_ did not seem safe. Not at all.

"Um... y-yes, sir," she stammered, still maintaining appearance for Courtney's sake, and that of any other wandering customers.

Robotnik drew closer and Alex tried to take a step away, but the ladder was right behind her. There was nowhere to go. He dropped his voice so that her coworker wouldn't overhear as he spoke.

"You should know I'm not here to hurt you or wreak havoc on this establishment," he quietly assured her. "I merely came to have a chat with you, really. Oh, and also..." He reached into an interior pocket of his coat and pulled out her wallet. "I do believe you dropped this."

Alex reached for it, then hesitated. Eyeing it, and perhaps more so eyeing his hand warily, she quickly snatched it and peeked inside, checking its contents. Everything seemed to be there, and she didn't see anything that looked to mechanical, nothing that could pass for a tracking device or a bomb. Satisfied that her wallet, at least, was safe, she pocketed it.

"Thanks," she mumbled. "So, I'll, um... I'll just show you where we keep these... um... items," she said, glancing down at the paper once more. "Th-This way."

Alex led him through the store, walking with her head down, as one condemned. Robotnik had come to her place of work. How had he found her here? And what did he want to 'chat' about? Alex really wished she hadn't agreed to take Jess's shift today. And she really wished she had any way of contacting Sonic. Why hadn't she thought of getting him a Tracfone or something? That way she could at least send an SOS text. _Robotnik found me! Help!_

As Alex walked, she nervously and absentmindedly began tearing off the perforated margins of the paper. Helplessly, she led Robotnik down an aisle where they kept the servo cables. Why was this aisle so far away from the center of the store and any exit points?

_Oh God, I'm alone with him,_ she thought. _So very alone..._

Taking a deep breath, Alex said, "We keep the servo cables here. The voltage dividers and actuators are in the next aisle over, and everything else can be found in 6B. Please let me know if you need anything else."

And with that, she turned to walk away from him. Alex wasn't sure how wise it was to put her back to Robotnik, but there was no way she was going to linger in his presence any longer than she had to.

Robotnik's gaze narrowed behind his dark glasses. "Actually..."

He reached out with his gloved hand and grabbed her arm. Alex gasped as he yanked her back to him and pressed her against the display rack. For a man who relied mostly on robots and machinery to do his dirty work, he was surprisingly strong. Of course, despite a corpulent figure, this Robotnik - the _real_ Robotnik - was also realistically proportioned and quite physically imposing. He was tall as well as thick, and Alex found she had not the strength to escape his grasp.

"There is more that I came here for today. Something _much_ more important than spare parts." He leaned in close, to the point where Alex could see her reflection in his dark lenses. "I'm here... for a Chaos Emerald."

Seized by terror, Alex was a helpless victim. But when faced with her reflection in his dark glasses, she hated what she saw; a pale-faced, wide-eyed young women full of fear. Her thoughts immediately drifted to Sonic and her apology to him.

_"I'm not much of a heroine, am I? I want to show you that I can help you and that you can trust me. I don't think you can do this alone, Sonic. I think you need someone here on Earth, a friend, a guide, a fan who knows enough to be helpful... But someone brave. And maybe... maybe I'm not that person."_

And Sonic's words to her in turn: _"You're just a regular girl, right? No one would've expected you to go toe to toe with a maniacal technophile. No amount of video games can prepare you for what real life has to offer. None of this should be happening to you, but the shitty truth of the matter is that it_ is _happening. And you're as involved in all of this as I am._ "

Drawing on some deep inner strength that she didn't even know she had, Alex narrowed her eyes at Robotnik, much preferring the reflection she saw now. Tonelessly, she replied, "I'm afraid we're fresh out of Chaos Emeralds, sir. Perhaps you'd like to try the jewelers on 12th street."

A small smile quirked at the corner of the doctor's lips. "Cute," he said, "But your mouth may cause you some unnecessary trouble if you're not careful."

Alex snapped her mouth shut and gulped nervously, properly chastised and humbled once more.

"You may not realize it, but I _have_ come to the right place. I didn't have Sage uncover much of your personal history for nothing. Though you should _really_ get your ID updated. Those poor people at your old address seemed quite terrified when I came to their door."

Alex's eyes went wide. He'd gone to her old address! He'd come looking for her! Thank God she never updated her ID. But now he knew where she worked! And who knows what else he learned from Sage's digging?

"Regardless, I've discovered something quite fascinating about you, Miss Parker. And that brings me to the real business I've come here for. It's all pertaining to your recent medical history."

"M-My medical..." Her eyes widened in understanding. "Y-You can't do that! That's, like, a huge HIPAA violation!" Although she couldn't see his eyes, Alex was almost certain he was rolling them.

"Do you really think this modern age of computer systems on this world can keep me from finding anything I desire? These information networks are so poorly protected that they might as well be hemorrhaging information. It was far more complicated to find information on people 40 years ago. But I digress. It would seem that your doctor has discovered some... anomalies... in your recent tests. Anomalies they weren't sure what to make of. I may not be a medical doctor, Miss Parker, but the source of the anomalies they discovered were fairly obvious to me. Their scans picked up the chaos energy that's currently flooding your entire body."

"Yes," said Alex, as of yet unfazed. "You and your... _henchman_... referenced my affliction the other day. I was at 'ground zero of Chaos Control,' after all," she said, referencing his own words from that day in a voice that was remarkably like his own. "So, essentially, you're not telling me anything I don't already know, only that the 'anomaly' is showing up on my medical records which you illegally obtained. And I really don't see where that matters as I assume our humble Earth doctors won't know what to make of 'chaos energy.'"

Boldly, but gently, Alex pushed him away from her. "I'm flattered you've taken such an interest in my health, Doctor, but if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to my life now."

Once more she attempted to retreat, but Robotnik wasn't about to allow her to simply walk away from him. He thrust his arm up, slamming his hand against the shelf and blocking her path and causing her to cry out in fear.

"I'm not finished! I've hardly begun!"

Once more, Alex found herself facing him, her back figuratively _and_ quite literally against the wall. Goodness, but her eyes were big. Robotnik certainly enjoyed the look of fear on her face. He could just make out his own reflection in her eyes. Oh yes... he rather enjoyed seeing this girl put in her place, especially since her snarky comments were beginning to make him feel as if she was spending far too much time with the hedgehog.

"According _my_ analysis, combining your medical scan with the readings that Sage took from your person, the chaos energy is not only growing with your emotions, but it is in a constant flow of regeneration. It would seem that you aren't simply irradiated with residual chaos energy... But it seems that you are now generating it. In other words... you're a living, breathing Chaos Emerald."

Alex's face paled considerably. As though perfectly timed, her emotions of fear and anxiety wrought an instant effect upon her. Her chaos energy spiked to the point where Robotnik could feel it radiating off of her, even without any sort of detection device. She began to flicker. As she did, Alex saw a man step into view at the opposite end of the aisle; a man dressed in a track suit with a baseball cap.

She glanced in his direction, hoping perhaps it was a good Samaritan come to help the female employee escape the unwanted attentions of a forceful male customer. But a closer look at this man's handsome features and, to her dismay, Alex recognized him as Robotnik's android minion, Sage. Why was he here? To protect his master? Or to offer backup to ensure the 'Chaos Emerald' didn't escape? Reluctantly, Alex returned her gaze to Robotnik.

"A-A Chaos Emerald? Me? But..."

She couldn't find the words. Alex lowered her gaze as she thought back to the two instances in which she'd seemed to have fallen asleep in one place and reappeared in another. Slowly, her gaze returned to his. There were tears in her eyes.

"Wh-What does that mean?" she whispered tremulously. "What's going to happen to me?"

Robotnik's expression softened and he spoke in a strangely comforting tone. "At the moment, nothing. For, you see, I don't wish for this situation to grow particularly complicated. Especially since I know that you and the hedgehog are apparently... _friends_." He said this with a tone of disgust. "But I believe we can solve this matter without his involvement being necessary."

Immediate red flags rose in Alex's mind, and with it, an old phrase from her childhood days. 'Stranger danger! Stranger danger!' Alex stuffed her hands in the pockets of her apron so that Robotnik wouldn't see them trembling.

"So in other words," she said, raising a single eyebrow, "It'll be our little secret?"

Robotnik smirked at her as though she were being funny. "I have no quarrel with you, Miss Parker. You've done nothing to me. I don't wish to harm you. In fact, it would be fine with me if you and I never crossed paths again. However, as long as that energy is in you, _that_ makes you a target. It doesn't have to be that way, though. I can help you."

"A target for what? _You_ , presumably. And yet you say can help me." She shook her head. "Sorry, but that doesn't make much sense to me."

Robotnik tilted his head inquisitively and gave her something of a knowing grin. "I assume that some... peculiarities... have been happening to you lately. This flickering problem... perhaps finding yourself in a completely different location in the blink of an eye?"

Alex stiffened. She didn't reply, but her body language and the look in her eyes told him all he needed to know. Yes... she'd done exactly that, and most likely without intention.

"It would seem like I've hit the so-called 'nail' on the proverbial 'head.' Do you know what that means, Miss Parker? It's Chaos Control. You've been unwittingly performing small bursts of Chaos Control. What I'm telling you is that I have ways that I can make this no longer a factor. I can rid you of this problem of yours, and you and I will never have to deal with one another again." He smiled in a surprisingly gentlemanly manner. "You could return to your life, attending classes, working this... surely well-paying and fulfilling career of yours, and... taking care of your mother."

There it was. His ace in the hole. Alex's eyes went wide. He knew about her mother! Suddenly, she felt faint. Her knees buckled and she had to prop her hands on the shelf behind her to keep from sinking to the floor.

"I-I'd appreciate it if you'd leave my mother out of this," she said quietly, her eyes full of fear, anguish, and a hint of righteous anger. But Robotnik ignored her, dismissing her request entirely.

"You could go back to pretending I'm just a figment of your imagination and living the life of a regular young woman." His smile broadened, showing off his large, perfectly straight white teeth. "Doesn't that sound nice?"

"B-But what would that entail?" she asked. "What do you expect to get in return? No offense, but there's no way you're just doing this out of the goodness of your heart."

As they spoke, a young boy and his mother were walking past the aisle. Robotnik's arm quickly dropped down the very instant they passed into view. The boy was proudly holding aloft the newest Sonic game like a trophy. He paused briefly and glanced down the aisle, his eyes growing wide as they fell on the bald, corpulent mustached man in the cap and coat. He tugged on his mother's sleeve, pointing open-mouthed at Robotnik. His mother glanced over to see what he was pointing at. Her eyes briefly lit up with recognition. Then, blushing, she grabbed her son by the arm and tugged him along.

"It's rude to point, honey."

"But mom!"

Alex gazed pleadingly after them, hoping to convey some telepathic message for help at the mother, but to no avail. The moment they disappeared around the next aisle, Robotnik put both of his hands on the rack behind her, trapping her between his arms. Alex cowered against the shelves, but there was nowhere to go.

"You're right, of course. There _is_ something I want. But in truth, helping rid you of this chaos energy will, in turn, give me exactly what I want. I want that energy. I want to siphon it from you and place it in a far more useful receptacle. Then, you'll be a normal girl again. And _I'll_ be in possession of an eighth Chaos Emerald, one created by my own hands. _That_ , my dear Miss Parker, is a miracle of science that I never believed possible. And I wish to achieve the impossible."

Alex blinked. "I mean, there are already seven. Would an 8th one make _that_ much of a difference?" she asked, intrigued, only to blush and lower her gaze. "Stop asking geeky questions, Alex," she quietly admonished herself. "Time and place."

Robotnik arched a hairless brow. Did this girl often talk to herself? An amusing quirk to say the least. She lifted her gaze to him once more, and this time her expression was bold and determined. Impressive. This girl could muster her courage when she really wanted to. In a way, he had to admire it.

"So long as we're being transparent here," she said, "Let me just state that I have _major_ reservations about giving 'Dr. Robotnik' an eighth Chaos Emerald, let alone _one_. And what about Sonic? He wants to go back home, and I want to help him. He's my friend and nothing's gonna change that. So exactly how do we accomplish what you're suggesting considering this... conflict of interests?"

Robotnik grinned and stepped away from her, freeing her from the trap of his arms. "There's something I think we can agree on, actually. Sonic _should_ be allowed to return home! He shouldn't be here. He doesn't belong here. Me, I've been striving for _years_ to find a way to return to Earth. And thanks to _you_ , I've found it." He placed a hand over his heart as though swearing an oath. "I never meant for you to be harmed from it, and I certainly never intended to bring _Sonic_ here."

Alex was sure he didn't mean for anything he didn't anticipate. But she doubted he truly cared what happened to her. Of course, she didn't dare say it.

"Finding a way to return Sonic back to his world is a top priority. Then everything can go back to normal. And perhaps... I can even put my former life back together, after all these years."

_Bullshit,_ thought Alex.

There was no way Robotnik was just going to let Sonic go home after all the grief the hedgehog had caused him. He'd want revenge. He was trying to trick her just like he'd done to Knuckles in Sonic 3, and - perhaps an even closer parallel - to Chris Thorndyke in episode 26 of Sonic X. According to what she'd gleaned from Sonic, the events of Sonic X did not happen; it was merely a work of fiction. But the point was, Alex knew what Robotnik was capable of. She knew exactly what he was up to, and she wouldn't fall for it.

In this instance, she had the advantage over Robotnik. He must have learned the bare minimum, either from his own research or from Edgar Roman. But it was obvious he didn't know the extent of his and Sonic's roles as pop culture icons in this world. So, he didn't know that Alex knew he was full of shit. And she certainly wasn't going to tell him, even if she _was_ tempted to ask him if she looked like an echidna to him. That would be throwing away her advantage. Instead, she feigned a smile.

"I see. Well, I suppose we _do_ have similar goals..." She hesitated. Then, "Look, I can't give you an answer right now," she said truthfully. "But I can promise I'll think about it."

Yeah, she'd think about it all right. Think about what a horrible idea it was. Alex watched his smile turn into a scowl and her heart began to race. Nope... not out of the woods yet.

"A gentleman would give me time to consider his offer, don't you think?" she added quickly. "That's fair, isn't it?"

Robotnik was silent for a long time. Finally, he nodded. "So be it. I'll give you time to consider my offer. Honestly, I think I'm being quite generous, considering I know where you work and where you go to school. I could just have Stark rush in here and grab you."

Alex gulped nervously. _So essentially what you're saying is... I have no choice in the matter. Basically, you're giving me time to decide whether to say yes or be kidnapped._

"But, I am a gentleman after all." He doffed his driving cap and offered her an elegant bow. But soon the cap was back on his head and he loomed over her once more. "It's settled then. And do be quick with your answer. I'm a very busy man and don't have time to just wait around."

"Right..." With a sigh Alex handed him back his shopping list. "So... would you like help finding the rest of these?" she asked. "Perhaps a new printer?"

Robotnik scanned the list. "Printer... Printer? No. No, it's not on the list."

Was what he said a joke, or was he serious? After a moment, Alex determined that he was quite serious about checking his list for a new printer. At the very least, he seemed to have moved beyond the dangerous conversation they'd been having. His mind was solely on his supplies now.

"Perhaps you can point me in the direction of the most powerful computers that this store has to offer. I think I could use a few to tie together my new control system."

Alex's eyebrows lifted. "A few? Holy shit..." Shaking her head, she turned around and beckoned him to follow. "This way."

She led him to all the different locations for his supplies, including the computer department where she walked him through, telling him the specs on each one. When he decided what he wanted, she called her coworker, Aaron, and informed him which ones to package and carry to the checkout counter. Aaron's mind was positively blown that this eccentrically dressed man was buying not one, but several computers. But Alex shooed him on his way, trying to keep her nosy and overly chatty coworker from irritating Robotnik too much.

This task having been done, Alex turned to Robotnik, feeling upset, exhausted, and dangerously bold. "So listen... I can clearly see you've picked up on a few things around here. Judging by the way you're dressed, you've got the general gist of your situation. But I can tell you're still in the dark about a lot of things, so I'm going to do you a favor."

"What?" he blustered. "What are you going on about?"

She led him to the video game department and handed him an old black console that, despite its clunky-ness, was surprisingly light.

"Here's a Genesis. It's used, but so are any that you'd find nowadays. We stand by the quality of all our games, though, so you have a problem, there's a 30-day return policy."

Robotnik gazed down at the Genesis, seeing a word that was familiar to him. Alex heard him speak it softly to himself. "Sega..."

Alex didn't see the look on his face, nor did she hear the tone. She simply replied, "Yeah, they don't make consoles anymore. Not since the Dreamcast."

Robotnik's eyes widened at her words. "Dreamcast? They made..." His eyes narrowed as he fumed silently to himself. Alex didn't notice.

"They're more a third-party game maker these days. Still, the Sega Genesis is one of the most beloved consoles of all time. Anyway, I'm sure you'll figure out how to use it."

Next, she handed him a clam-shell box with Sonic's face on it. "That's Sonic 3," she told him in answer to his sneer. "I think you'll find that one particularly relevant. You should make sure to read the inserts, too. We also have Sonic 1, but Sonic 2 is out of stock. But you don't need those... I mean, unless you really get hooked. Then we can order more. Also... do you want a Blue Ray player? No, actually, let's go with a simple DVD player. That's cheaper. And here..." She handed him a DVD box which read, _Sonic X Season One_.

"What _is_ all this?" he growled.

"Research," she replied simply. "Do your due diligence, Doctor. Sonic's already up to speed." She smirked at the irony of her comment. "You should know how things are, too. You can thank me later."

That said, she led him to the checkout counter and rung him up. "That'll be..." Alex's eyes widened. "Wow. A lot. Ahem... Well, you bought four computers, so..." She quietly gave him the total.

Robotnik frowned, looking it all over. Alex tensed, ready to hand over all the electronics, and possibly all the contents of the cash register whilst having a Sci-Fi-like blaster pointed in her face, but instead, Robotnik took out his wallet. Alex breathed a sigh of relief.

"You know, when Grousman's Electronics was in this exact location back in 1985, I'm pretty sure I could've gotten all these for under $500." He let out a sigh. "Oh, well... Inflation and all that, I suppose."

"You sound like my grandpa," muttered Alex, casting a nervous glance towards Sage, who was watching her from the customer service desk, looking intimidating.

Courtney, however, was anything but intimidated. She was leaning across the counter attempting to, Alex could only assume, flirt.

_If she only knew,_ thought Alex, hoping, in spite of herself, that Courtney wasn't about to become mincemeat for her audacity.

Though Sage's eyes occasionally flicked to Courtney, his attention was entirely on Alex, whom he'd been studying, scanning the fluctuating levels of chaos energy within her. At the moment, it was fairly calm.

Robotnik pulled out a huge wad of cash. Alex's jaw dropped as he handed her the entire sum in a mix of 20's and 50's. "And I expect change," he said firmly.

"Jesus Christ," Alex muttered under her breath. "Did you rob a bank?"

Robotnik stared evenly at her. "I'm not going to dignify that with a response."

Against her better judgement, Alex proceeded to cash him out, giving him the exact change to the cent, for she dared not cheat him even on accident, as she was certain the consequences would be dire. On his receipt, she wrote, 'Episode 26,' and slipped it discretely into the Sonic X DVD box. Then, she handed him the bag containing his purchases.

"Aaron will carry the computers to your... vehicle," she said. "I seriously hope you drove a car here."

"Of course, I did. What else would I drive here?" His gaze shot to Sage standing nearby. "Sage... to the car."

Sage inclined his head obediently before turning toward Courtney, whom until now he'd hardly acknowledged. Now, Alex stiffened as he raised his hand and lightly trailed his fingers across Courtney's jawline, sending a stimulating tingling sensation through her skin.

"Another time, perhaps."

Thankfully, Courtney seemed unharmed, if not a little dazed; though Alex supposed she couldn't blame her. For an artificial human (at least, that's what she was assuming Sages was) he was disarmingly handsome. Did Robotnik make him look that way on purpose? And why? Certain ideas occurred to her, each one more bothersome than the next. A seduction robot, perhaps, to get women to cooperate?

Suppressing a shudder, Alex's gaze was once more ensnared by Robotnik as his hand clamped over hers, commanding her attention.

"Remember my offer, Miss Parker," he said darkly. "There's an easy way to go about things. But I'm just as content to do things... the messy way."

_Yeah, I_ bet _you are,_ thought Alex.

His voice dropped so only she could hear. "And _do_ leave the hedgehog out of this. I'd hate to have to go and pay your mother a little visit."

Alex began to tremble. A brief flicker ran through her body like a shudder, and the look in her eyes at this threat confirmed for Robotnik that she was as good as his.

With a wicked grin, Robotnik tipped his hat to them. "Have an outstanding day, ladies."

Once they were gone, Courtney joined Alex at the checkout counter. "Holy shit... Did that dude pay with _cash_?"

Alex said nothing.

"Did you see the guy who was _with_ him? That dude was a total snack! Think that was his son? Maybe they're rich!"

Aaron returned shortly from assisting Robotnik with his computers. "Holy shit," he said, echoing Courtney's previous sentiment. "That dude who just bought, like, four computers? He drives a Lincoln MKT sedan! And did you see the way he was dressed? Do you think he's with the CIA?"

But to Courtney and Aaron's surprise, Alex burst into tears.

"Wha... Alex?"

Alex ran to the employee bathroom and locked herself in. Robotnik knew _everything_! He'd found out just about everything there was to know about her! And her mother! He'd threatened her mother! There was no way she wanted to cut a deal with Eggman. She so desperately wanted to run home and tell Sonic everything that happened... but she couldn't. Her mother was on the line. What would Robotnik do? Would he hurt her?

Alex sat on the toilet, drawing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs as she buried her face in her knees and sobbed. There was a knock at the door. It was Courtney.

"Seriously, Alex? Are you okay?"

To her credit, Courtney was, for once, actually behaving like a concerned coworker.

"Was that guy sexually harassing you?"

That scenario was too much. Alex leapt off the toilet, lifted the lid and puked.

"Sounds like she's throwing up," she heard Courtney say softly from the other side of the door, presumably to Aaron. "So, um... would this be a bad time to tell you I gave that long-haired guy your number?"

Alex threw open the door, gaping up at Courtney. "YOU WHAT?"

Courtney shrugged. "He asked for your number. Guess he thought you were cute. Figured I was doing you a favor by giving it to him."

Alex returned to the bathroom and vomited again.

"Alex?" said Aaron. "What did that guy do to you? If he was behaving inappropriately, we can have him blacklisted from the store."

_Ha, like that would do any good,_ thought Alex miserably.

Eventually, she managed to compose herself enough to emerge from the bathroom. And somehow, miraculously, perhaps solely due to the distraction it provided, Alex managed to stick it out until the end of her shift. Though with Aaron's sympathetic looks and Courtney's constant badgering to know what happened, Robotnik was never far from her mind.


	10. Chapter 10

By the time Alex left the store, it was just after nine o'clock and the sun had gone down. Keeping her head down and her hoodie pulled up, she walked briskly to the bus stop. Every shadow, every sound made her jump, as she expected Robotnik and his goons to jump out of every bush she passed. Finally, she arrived at the bus stop. The final bus of the night should be coming by soon. But while she waited, Alex called her mom.

"Hey, Mom. It's me."

"Alex, honey! I didn't expect to hear from you so late."

"Y-Yeah... I, uh, worked a closing shift tonight."

"You know I wish you wouldn't do that," said her mother. "It isn't safe for a young woman to work so late at night, especially when you have to walk home."

"I had to fill in for a coworker," Alex explained. "Otherwise I wouldn't have done it. But it's okay. I'm at the bus stop now." She hesitated. "Mom... um... no one came by to visit you recently, did they?"

"Visit me? Well, Aunt Dena stopped by yesterday."

"But no one else? No one who... um... knows me?"

"Knows you? What do you mean, honey?"

"A man," said Alex tremulously. "A man didn't stop by, did he?"

"The only man I've seen lately is Dr. Schneider, honey. Your mother doesn't exactly have the opportunity to meet strange or interesting men. Now what's this all about?"

"It's... it's nothing. Just promise me that if a man comes to see you, a man who says he knows me... you'll let me know, okay?"

"Alex..." said her mother, sensing something in her daughter's voice. "Baby, what's wrong? Did something happen?"

"No," Alex quickly lied. "It's fine. I just... I just wanted to know."

"Alex, honey, you're scaring me."

"There's no need to be scared, Mom. Everything's fine. Look, I have to go, but I'll text you when I get home, okay?"

"Alex-"

"It's late, Mom. You need your rest. I'll see you this weekend, okay? Love you! Bye!"

She hung up before her mother could say anything else. She knew she'd worried her mother, and she hated to do it. Her mother always took a turn for the worse whenever she let her anxiety get the better of her. But Alex had to know. Thankfully, it seemed Robotnik had not yet gone to see her mother. But he knew of her. He knew where she was. He knew she was sick, and that was bad enough.

Trembling, Alex took a seat on the bench and buried her face in her hands. What was taking the bus so long? It should've been here by now. Perhaps she'd missed it.

Wiping at her eyes, Alex stood up, shouldered her satchel and began walking briskly in the direction of campus. It seemed better to walk than just sit around and wait for something to happen.

***

It was late, and it was only getting later. And Patrick Miller was finally on his way home, driving the car that was on loan to him from his parents for the duration of his college career. He had stayed at the local comic and gaming shop for an after-hours session of Dungeons and Dragons, during which one of his friends had asked him a question about something rather peculiar.

_"Have you heard about 'The Red Devil,' Patrick?"_

His friend, whom everyone in the D&D group simply called by his last name of 'Bosley,' shared Patrick's affinity for Cryptozoology. In their spare time, they both researched things like Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, the Flatwoods Monster, the Dover Demon, and the Jersey Devil.

One of the other guys had laughed and said, _"You mean, Satan?"_

And thus, Bosley had gone on about sightings of some new creature that they were calling 'The Red Devil.'

Patrick, curious, had responded with, _"What the hell are you talking about, Bosley?"_

And so Bosley had told Patrick to dig into the Crypto Forums and read related posts about The Red Devil.

Patrick smirked as he drove back towards campus, muttering to himself about Bosley's Red Devil. But as he was driving, he noticed someone walking on the side of the road. It sure was late to be out and about. He squinted and slowed to see who it was.

***

Alex was walking briskly back in the direction of Scottstown campus, wishing so very much that she had Sonic's speed. No amount of brisk walking could save her from the paranoia that Robotnik and his henchmen might be on her tail even now in their 'Lincoln MKT sedan.' So, when she heard the sound of an approaching vehicle behind her and saw the glow of headlights, she began to sprint. However, when the car slowed to a crawl to match pace with her and the window rolled down, the voice which hailed her was not Robotnik's.

"Alex? Is that you? What are you doing out here so late?"

Alex slowed to a halt and turned to appraise the young man who'd called her name. "H-Hey," she stammered breathlessly. "P-Patrick Miller, right? You're P-Patrick M-Miller."

Her dark hoodie was pulled up over her head, as though she were trying to hide her identity. But in the warm glow of his headlights, Patrick could see her pale face, wide eyes, and the silver tear-tracks on her cheeks. A pang of worry shot through him. What had happened to make her look the way she did? Had she been crying?

"Y-Yeah. That's me. You remembered. Are you okay? You look like you were trying to run away. Almost as if you'd seen a-"

_'Red Devil!'_ Bosley would've no doubt shouted if he'd been with him. Patrick forced his dopey friend out of his mind.

"...a ghost or something." Patrick glanced around, trying to see if someone was following her. "Do you... uh... Would you like a..." He cleared his throat and took a deep breath. "Can I give you a ride? It's pretty late... Might not be safe out here, ya know?"

He was half expecting her to turn him down, but to his surprise, the girl burst into tears of relief and gave him an instantaneous, "YES!"

She ran to the passenger side of the car, threw open the door and leapt inside. She was holding her satchel close to her chest, hugging it as though it were a security blanket, as she took great gulps of air.

"Th-Thank you," she stammered, wiping tears from her eyes. "Thank you so much, Patrick." Indeed, she was grateful to him. This boy, whom she'd only really met officially once, was a savior. Her gratitude was so great that if she'd known him a little better, she might have even kissed him.

Patrick gave her a somewhat nervous smile. She was in his car! The girl he'd liked from the moment he saw her, but never had the nerve to actually talk to until recently... was actually in his car! He only wished he could be more excited about this fact, as she looked like she was in a really bad way. Regardless, he started driving.

After a few moments, he broke the awkward silence. "Maybe it's none of my business, and if you don't wanna tell me, it's fine. But... are you okay?"

Alex shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks, as her following words contradicted themselves. "Yes. No. I don't know. I just... I had a really bad day at work. You m-must think it's silly for me to cry over something like that, but it was... it was really bad. Like _way past_ bad. I do appreciate your concern, but I'm n-not really up for giving details at the moment."

There was no way he'd believe it anyway. He'd think she was crazy. Slowly, she turned in her seat to face him.

"M-Maybe you could just talk to me, you know? About something, _anything_. Just something to get my mind off things."

Patrick's mind began to race. A topic! A topic! What could he talk about that she'd be remotely interested in?

"Maybe something you're really into right now or like..." Alex trailed off, her brow furrowing. "Or how you got a car all of a sudden," she said, recalling the day she'd met him on the bus.

"Huh? What do you..."

Then, he remembered. The day he'd met Alex at the bus stop! If he had a car, why would he be catching a bus? Well, of course, he'd only run to the bus stop because he saw that _she_ was there! He had no reason to catch the bus. He had his own car that he could drive anywhere he needed to go. But he acted like he needed to catch the bus in order to talk to her. One of the boldest things he'd _ever_ done!

It hadn't been premeditated. He'd been heading out anyway when he spotted her. He wanted to talk to her, but couldn't think of an excuse, and when he saw the bus coming to take her away, he panicked and ran after it. Sure enough, he'd gotten the chance to sit and talk with her, but when she got off the bus, it continued on and carried him way out of his familiar stomping grounds and he had to walk all the way back to campus which had taken the better part of a day.

_Serves me right,_ he had thought to himself at the time.

But he couldn't tell her the truth about that. At least not yet. She'd probably think him a creep or something for pulling a stunt like that. So, instead, he blurted out, "The shop! Uh... I mean, it was in the shop that day that I had to catch the bus. I, uh... I just got it back. Heh..."

Yes! That was good! That sounded plausible!

Alex was so preoccupied with her own troubles that she didn't seem to notice the awkward way he stumbled over his words. Instead, she gazed out the window, watching the dark scenery roll past, hoping not to see a hovering vehicle or egg-shaped drone following them.

"Hmm," she said distractedly. "Tell me something more interesting."

This would have sounded demanding from any other girl, but from Alex Parker... Sweet, adorable Alex Parker with tears on her cheeks, it was simply a cry for help.

"Seriously, tell me anything. No matter how stupid it may seem. I won't judge. I just need a distraction. Please. Like, what's the most interesting thing you did or heard or saw today?"

Patrick racked his brains. What could he tell her? Then, he heard Bosley's voice again.

_'Have you ever heard of The Red Devil?'_

Would she go for that? Or would she think him a weirdo? Well, it was worth a try.

"Okay, I got it. Uh... Have you ever heard of Cryptozoology?"

She simply nodded, eyeing him curiously.

"Yeah, so it's that pseudo-science that researches creatures that may or may not exist... Ya know like Bigfoot and stuff like that?"

Her lips quirked ever so slightly at the word 'Bigfoot.' Yes, this was his chosen topic. If this didn't help distract her, he'd never forgive himself. The last thing he wanted was to bore or weird her out.

"Well, a friend of mine was telling me about a new creature that has allegedly been sighted. Something they're calling The Red Devil."

Alex lifted an eyebrow. Oh God... Was he boring her? Was he coming off as weird? Stupid? Right away, Patrick felt like this was a mistake; a bad idea. He was losing her. Boring her. She was going to regret ever getting in his car! Why did he bring this up?

_Damn you, Bosley!!_ Of course, a cute and classy girl like Alex Parker wouldn't give a damn about something like this! But then...

"Is that anything like The Jersey Devil?" she asked.

As they reached a red light, Patrick hit the brakes a little harder than he intended to, causing both of them to lurch forward slightly. He didn't apologize. Instead, he gazed at her in awe.

"You know what The Jersey Devil is?"

Alex shrugged. "I mean, yeah. Like the Flatwoods Monster and Loch Ness and stuff, right?"

Patrick felt as though a huge weight had been lifted off of him. So, this was something she found interesting after all! Even to the point of knowing a thing or two!

"Well, we don't know yet," said Patrick. "This guy's fairly new. Like, it just cropped up. And the wild thing is, it was spotted around here! Like in North Lake! According to eyewitness reports, a strange red creature was seen climbing up the walls of buildings with two sharp claws before it launched itself through the air, flying off into the night. There hasn't been any video or photographic evidence yet, but multiple eyewitnesses did report it to both the police and animal control."

The particular aspects Patrick described about the creature seemed to needle in the back of Alex's mind, though she couldn't figure out why.

"Huh. Weird," she said. "I mean, most Cryptozoology stuff is really just fake, right? Like a misinterpretation of something or mass hysteria, right? It's kinda weird to be hearing about something like that here in North Lake in this age of modern technology, isn't it?" She tilted her head thoughtfully. "But if there were multiple eye witnesses, maybe it's like some kind of rare species of animal not indigenous to North Lake. Like those hybrid pythons in Florida that have become an invasive species, or the murder hornets in Washington State. Hell, with climate change, who knows what animals might show up where they're not supposed to."

Patrick grinned. This girl was not only cute, she was smart. Alex leaned back in the seat, grinning straight ahead through the windshield.

"Or maybe it's a Pokemon."

Patrick snorted out a laugh. "A Pokemon. Right. That'd be a heck of a thing, wouldn't it?"

"Hey, stranger things have happened," she murmured, her thoughts drifting to Sonic. But then, realizing that probably sounded weird, she flushed and averted her gaze and quickly added, "So I'm told."

Patrick was smiling more and more. They were actually talking. And better yet, they were getting along!

"Who knows what it could be? Maybe all the eyewitnesses came out of the same bar. Or maybe there really _is_ something crawling up the sides of buildings in North Lake City. I guess we'll see if anything comes of this."

Alex laughed. "Well, I mean, it would be kinda cool if it was real, wouldn't it? I think I have an 'I Want to Believe' shirt somewhere. There's a reason. Because it's fun to believe. Though, it could also be scary, I guess."

"I'm really surprised you know so much about this kinda stuff."

Alex glanced sideways at him with an amused smirk. "Why? 'Cause I'm a girl? Well, then you should know I also play video games and collect comic books, and once I even played D&D with my cousin and his friends, though I'm not very good at roleplay. Mostly, though, my dad was a huge dork, so I get a lot of that from him. Also, my grandpa believes in conspiracy theories and to this day still insists he saw a UFO back in the '60s. So maybe that qualifies me."

Patrick shook his head and laughed. The more he talked to Alex, the more he learned about her, the more he was finding that he really liked her. Or, at the very least, he really wanted to get to know her better. He lifted a hand in mid-laugh, trying to get Alex to ease off.

"Okay okay... I understand. I mean, I never actually thought that it was because you were a girl. I was mostly just surprised that you would be as knowledgeable about something that's, arguably, not a legitimate study according to most people. But you definitely have it right. Whether these strange creatures are real or not, it's fun to believe that they _might_ be."

Alex was very tempted to tell him that she knew of at least one. She wondered what Patrick would say if she introduced him to Sonic. Was he even a Sonic fan? Could he keep a secret?

_Don't even think about it, Alex,_ she admonished herself. _Even if he can keep a secret, it's way too risky._

"Besides," Patrick teased, "I already knew you were a quote, unquote 'dork,' when you told me that you tried to do your hair like Ramona Flowers."

Alex looked at him in surprise, then realization dawned. "Oh... right. I almost forgot I even said that," she said, blushing bashfully. "You have a good memory for first-time conversations, Patrick Miller."

"Well, that's only because you leave a lasting impression, Alex Parker." Immediately after it slipped from his mouth, he swallowed and flushed a bit himself. Had he really said that out loud?

Alex averted her gaze shyly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She smiled. But beyond that, she said nothing.

They were nearing the college now. Alex directed him to the apartment complex where she lived just off campus. "This is my building," she said.

Patrick parked in front of the building, and just like that, the ride was already over.

"Thanks again for the ride," she said softly, her tone and expression much more subdued than it had been. It seemed whatever had been bothering her before had returned. "And for distracting me," she added, managing a smile for him. It was a sad smile, but it was still a smile, and it was all for him.

Taking a deep breath, as though she were almost frightened to leave the car, Alex opened the door. As she did so, Patrick worked out the gumption to blurt out, "Uh... Hey! Uhm... do you, uh... want me to walk you to your door or something? Because, I'm in no hurry. I can make sure you get in okay."

For a moment, Patrick feared he sounded a bit too forward. But Alex spun back towards him so quickly that her hair whipped about her face.

"Would you?" she asked in a tone that was both surprised and pleading.

Her eyes were so large. She was definitely spooked about something and desperate to accept his offer. It was sad to see her so scared, but the way her eyes shined in the orange glow of the street lamps... it was almost magical.

It hurt him to see that look of fear. But at the same time, it was a look that said 'I need your help. Please!' When else would he get an opportunity like this?

Right away, Patrick turned the car off and climbed out of it. Though, as he was about to close his car door, he spotted something in his back seat - Alex's textbook from the other day. Patrick grabbed the book and tucked it under his arm, closing and locking the door behind him.

"Okay. Lead the way."

The look on her face was all the thanks he needed as they stepped out of the car and made their way up the exterior stairs to the second-floor apartments.

***

Meanwhile, inside Alex's humble apartment, Sonic was waiting impatiently for his kindly benefactor to return. Alex had been at work practically all day and it was getting late. And he... was getting bored. Even the old Genesis games were starting to grow tedious.

"Ugh... How many times can I beat these? And who the hell needs Super Emeralds, anyway? Those aren't even a thing!" Sonic sat up from the couch and blinked. "Oh great. Nice going, Sonic. You're so bored that you're talking to yourself." He sped a foot to the left. "I am not!" He sped back to the right. "Oh, you definitely are." He sped back to the left. "Speak for yourself!"

With a groan, Sonic threw himself back onto the couch. "Ugh... If something doesn't happen soon, I'm gonna _die_ from boredom!"

Then, suddenly, salvation! He could hear Alex's voice from down the hallway. She seemed to be talking to someone. Curious, Sonic grabbed a chair and brought it over to the door so he could listen in. He pressed his ear against the door.

"Thanks again for the ride. Seriously, you were my deus ex machina tonight. You really have no idea. I would've hated to walk home."

"Oh, I was happy to do it. I may not be as cool as Gandalf calling in some Giant Eagles, but I'll do in a pinch, I think."

Sonic stood on his tiptoes on the chair so he could peek out through the tiny peephole. It was the boy from the bus the other day. The one named Patrick Miller. What was _he_ doing here? Why did he need to give Alex a ride home? Just what was going on?

"I don't know," said Alex. "I think if Gandalf had a car, they'd have made it to Mordor a lot faster. Really, I'm grateful. And not just for the ride. For everything." She lowered her gaze and tucked another stray hair behind her ear. "It was a nice distraction after the day I had. My mind was going to dark places and I was jumping at shadows. I really needed that."

Patrick nodded and smiled. "Absolutely. It really was no big deal. I was happy to do it." He felt the book under his arm starting to slip, reminding him that he had it. "Oh! Before I forget..." He handed it to her.

"Oh! My book!" exclaimed Alex, taking her calculus textbook from him. "Thanks. I would've been in a lot of trouble if I'd lost it."

"You left it in class when you made your stealthy exit. I didn't even notice you leave. You're a sneaky one, Alex."

"Oh! That's because-" she trailed off abruptly. She'd almost just casually told Patrick she'd chaos controlled herself out of class. Damn it, this boy was so easy to talk to. Almost _too_ easy. She'd have to be careful around him. "Uh... because I just couldn't stay awake. I've been really tired lately. Guess I'm still recovering from the whole REMgage incident. I think I might have slept-walked out of class to the coffee shop," she said, rubbing the back of her neck with a nervous laugh. "A-Anyway, I should really be going now. I'm exhausted and I've got class tomorrow. So, um, I'll catch you later, okay?"

"Yeah. Me too. I'd better get going before my roommate kicks me out of the apartment for the night again. Have a good night, Alex." With one last smile, Patrick turned and walked down the hallway.

Watching from the peephole, Sonic muttered quietly to himself. "Nice knowin' ya, bus boy. Now move along home."

Alex had just turned towards the door, when she hesitated. Then, spinning back around, she called to Patrick as he walked down the hallway.

"P-Patrick! Wait!"

Patrick stopped and spun around. "What? What is it?"

Alex lowered her head and chewed her lip, suddenly nervous. Could she ask him? It was rather forward of her. But she desperately needed help. In the end she didn't know if Patrick Miller could make a difference in her rather dire situation, but maybe, just maybe he could make things just a little safer.

"I-I have a favor to ask," she stammered, and when she lifted her face again to look at him, he saw the tears had returned to her eyes. "Y-You see, I... I have a stalker."

_His name's Dr. Robotnik. Maybe you've heard of him?_

"A... A stalker??"

Alex took a deep breath and leaned against the door, tilting her head back and closing her eyes. A couple tears rolled down her cheeks.

"At work. There's... there's this guy who came to my work today, and... and I think he may come back. And, see, I have to work late again tomorrow, and I'm afraid to walk home alone. Hell, I'm afraid to walk to the bus stop by myself. I'm afraid this... this guy... I'm afraid he might..."

Patrick's eyes were wide in alarm. And he wasn't alone. On the other side of the door, Sonic's eyes were just as wide. Someone was stalking Alex? This was terrible! Why would she ask this boy she barely knew to help her out and not...

Then, it dawned on him. Because Sonic couldn't just walk Alex home. Sonic couldn't show up at her work. Sonic could barely leave her apartment. But this boy... _He_ could _._

Sonic turned away from the door and pressed his back against it, slumping down into the chair. "Oh man... Alex..."

"I'm sorry," said Alex, shaking her head and wiping the back of her sleeve across her eyes. "I shouldn't be putting this all on you."

"N-No! No, It's fine! I'll do it. I'll pick you up from work. I'd hate it if something were to happen to you. Yeah, I can pick you up. No problem."

The moment Patrick agreed, she burst into tears and threw her arms around him. "Oh-my-gosh! Thank you, thank you, thank you so much!"

Patrick couldn't help but get a wide dopey smile on his face as Alex hugged him. Though, the tears running down her face made him feel awful for enjoying this sudden embrace. But before he could take too much enjoyment out of this unexpected pleasantry, she quickly withdrew from him, blushing fiercely.

"S-Sorry," she apologized. "It's just... That means a lot to me. You're, like, totally my hero, dude."

Patrick smiled and rubbed the back of his neck bashfully. But hearing those words hit Sonic rather hard. This boy was her hero... because there was nothing _Sonic_ could do to help her in this situation. Why couldn't she just tell _him_ about this stalker creep? Sonic was certain that they could've figured out _something_ that he could do about it. But it really seemed that Alex couldn't rely on him in this matter. She needed someone who could really be out there to help her.

Sonic lowered his head. Suddenly, he didn't feel so useful. He climbed down from the chair and carried it back to the table. Slowly, dejectedly, he walked back to the couch and laid down upon it, putting his hands behind his head, just staring at the ceiling.

Alex wiped at her eyes. "A-Anyway, I work at North Lake Electronics. I get out at 8:30 tomorrow. Oh! I should probably give you my number. Here, give me your phone. I'll put it in." Patrick did his best to hide his elation that Alex was putting her number into his phone. "Oh, and I can give you some gas money, too," she offered.

"No, no. That's okay. That's not necessary. I don't want you to give me money. It's really not a problem at all."

Alex smiled at him. "Thank you," she said softly. "Again. Really. You're a decent guy, Patrick Miller."

Patrick gave a little shrug. "Well, you know... treat people how you want to be treated and all that."

Somewhat self-consciously, Alex shouldered her satchel and shifted from one foot to the other. "Well, um, I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then."

"Yep! Goodnight, Alex."

With a little wave, Patrick turned and headed on down the hallway. And despite the details of the situation, Patrick couldn't help but smile like a jackass. The girl that he'd liked from afar for so long was finally becoming a part of his life - through, admittedly, less than stellar circumstances, but it was happening, nonetheless.

Alex stood in the hallway until he was out of sight. Then, taking a deep breath, she turned back to the door. She put the key into the lock, only to hesitate. She needed to compose herself. It was important to keep a straight face in front of Sonic and not let him know that anything was amiss. She couldn't let him know that Robotnik had visited her at work today - even if she desperately wanted to. She wanted so badly to run into the apartment and throw her arms around him and cry and beg him to help her escape this dire situation. But to do that would put her mother at risk. The whole thought of it made her want to cry all over again, which was entirely counterproductive to what she needed to accomplish.

Taking a deep breath, she composed herself as best she could and slowly opened the door. Stepping into the apartment, she closed and locked the door behind her, then leaned with her forehead against it, closing her eyes.

_Come on, Alex,_ she thought. _You can do this. Just be your normally cheerful self._

With a deep breath, she turned around and, putting on the fakest smile Sonic had ever seen, she said, "H-Hey, Sonic... I'm home!"

Sonic was reclined on the couch with his hands behind his head. He raised a single hand in greeting. "Yo!"

Alex smiled at his strangely short greeting, which she interpreted merely as a result of boredom. She lifted his legs and took a seat on the couch beside him, dropping his legs back onto her lap. She leaned her head back against the couch and sighed.

"Man... long day," she said, hoping she could pass off some of her somber demeanor as mere exhaustion.

"You're telling me," he agreed.

She opened her eyes, staring at the ceiling in silence for a long time. She looked unusually pensive, and Sonic could see the troubled look in her eyes.

"Sonic..." she said slowly, sounding like she was working her way up to telling him something.

Immediately, Sonic sat up. "Yeah?" Maybe she was going to open up about what happened to her today. "What's up?"

Alex wasn't looking at him. She was still staring at the ceiling. He thought he could see her lip trembling as she hesitated.

Sonic was ready. He was ready for her to tell him her troubles. To unload her sorrows and let him be the friend she needed. But then... it didn't happen.

"Um... you, uh, wanna order a pizza tonight?"

Sonic's expression fell. He slumped back onto the couch. "Yeah. That's fine with me."

Alex put in a call for a large pizza with cheesy bread from a local 24-hour pizza parlor that was popular with the college students. It would be delivered in 45 minutes, during which time, Alex excused herself to take a shower. Afterwards, hair damp, in her pajamas, robe, and slippers, Alex answered the door, paid the delivery boy and took the pizza box to the living room. Sonic and Alex sat on the floor, eating the pizza in silence.

"So, um... you, like, wanna watch a movie or something?" she asked.

Sonic shrugged, lowering a slice of pizza from his mouth. "Yeah, if you want. Whatever will help you unwind."

More than content to cater to Sonic's ego, for she still felt bad about keeping him cooped up, Alex suggested some more Sonic-centered content. But Sonic, surprisingly, seemed rather bored with himself.

"Maybe later. You guys have some funny ideas about what goes on in my world."

So instead, with Patrick's reference to Gandalf on her mind, Alex decided on the first Lord of the Rings movie.

"It's based on a book," she explained, "And kind of a cultural phenomenon here on Earth. So if you're gonna be here for a while, you might as well be exposed to it."

Alex started the movie and they both curled up on the couch. Sonic didn't really know if he was enjoying the movie or not because his attention was on Alex almost the entire time. And it seemed she was just as distracted as he was. No doubt her stalker was still on her mind, troubling her.

Oh why, oh why couldn't she at least _tell_ him about it? Didn't she trust him? They were friends, weren't they? Why wouldn't she just _talk_ to him? Sonic's gaze did, eventually, find the movie. And for a while, he was really watching it. Though, the next time he glanced over at Alex, he found that she had scooted closer to him. Then, slowly, silently, Alex leaned against him, cuddling into him, wordlessly seeking his warmth and his comfort. He could feel her trembling.

So, she _did_ need him! Maybe not in the way that Patrick could help her, but in a way that she had a close friend in whom she could seek comfort. Sonic smiled. He could accept that. Gently, he took a hold of her hand, lacing his gloved fingers between hers.

At first, Alex stiffened, as though surprised by his action. Then, her grasp tightened in his, almost desperately tight, as though she were falling and he was the only thing holding her up. She rested her head on his shoulder.

_Sonic... I wish I could tell you! I want so badly to tell you! But I can't! I know you could help me, but you'd do so at your own peril... and at my mother's._

The movie continued, but Alex closed her eyes and clung tightly to Sonic, as she might once, as a child frightened of bad dreams, have clung to his doll. By the time the movie was over, Alex was asleep with her head resting in his notably small lap. Sonic's legs were going numb, but he didn't dare move. He didn't wish to disturb her. He saw the dampness on her cheeks. She'd been crying. He could see that quite plainly. And now, she was going to find herself in the deep sleep of a troubled mind.

Sonic frowned and brought his hand to Alex's head. Gently, he trailed his fingers through her hair, wanting to comfort her to the best of his abilities. It was such a shame that he couldn't do more for her, that he couldn't protect her more openly. He wanted to be able to go out with her and be able to protect her in public and in broad daylight. But it wasn't to be. He'd have to leave that job to the human boy.

_You'd better protect her with your life, Bus Boy._


	11. Chapter 11

"I'm sorry, Miss, but we really can't act unless he actually _does_ something."

"But he threatened me!" Alex protested. "He threatened my mom! He's stalking me! Doesn't that count for _something?_ "

The police officer scratched his stubbly chin. "I understand that, Miss. And while I _would_ like to do something about that, you have to understand that's not how the law works. The guy has freedom of speech, even if he chooses to use it unwisely. But if anything _were_ to happen, make sure you report it right away and—"

"Much good that's going to do me if he kidnaps me," snapped Alex, growing increasingly frustrated.

"Miss," said the officer, interlinking his hands and leaning across the desk. "I want to help you. I really do. And I will if and when I have to. But for the time being, all I can do is advise that you be aware of your surroundings, avoid going out at night, use the buddy system, check in with someone at all times, and consider carrying mace with you, or even a handgun, provided you acquire a permit to carry."

Alex left the campus police building that morning feeling even more helpless. Naturally, she hadn't told them that the stalker in question was Dr. Robotnik. But she'd told them the bare-bones scenario of what had happened at work yesterday and given them a description of 'her stalker,' and yet they could do nothing.

_Come on, Alex,_ she thought as she glumly trudged off to Art History class. _It's not as if you ever expected that the police could handle Robotnik._

But she had hoped. Oh, she had hoped there was at least _something!_

A half hour later, she sat at the back of the lecture hall in her Art History class. The professor had dimmed the lights and was showing them slides from the Late Baroque and Rococo period, something Alex would typically be very invested in, if not for her wandering mind.

_When does he expect me to give him an answer? What_ _will he do if I DON'T give him answer? And how AM I supposed to answer him anyway?_ _I don't even know where he is or how to contact him. And do I even WANT to?_

At that very moment, her phone, which she had put on silent mode during class, began to buzz, indicating that she just received a text message. Discreetly, she took it out of her pocket and held it below the level of the table to take a peek. It was a number she did not recognize. Perhaps it was Patrick! Feeling a little lighter of heart, Alex opened the message only for her heart to sink back into the pits of despair.

_Miss Parker. My master awaits your response in regards to his gracious offer. Send your reply promptly to this number._

It was a text from Robotnik, or at least his henchman; the cybernetic being he called 'Sage.'

_So soon?_ she thought in a panic. _It's hardly been 24 hours!_

What should she do?

Steeling herself, Alex replied in the only way she could. _I'm in class. I've got a full day and more classes and a swim meet tomorrow. You said I can be a regular girl. Well, let me fulfill my 'regular girl' obligations, please. I will send you a response by the weekend._

With a deep breath, she hit send. Then, she turned off her phone and pocketed it.

Alex did not receive another notification from Sage or Robotnik for the rest of the day. Neither did she see any signs of the mad doctor and his minions during her shift at work. It would seem that the single text message was all she was to receive, at least for this day. It was apparent now why Sage requested her number from Courtney. It was so that they'd have a direct line to contact Alex at all times. Robotnik had made his move and Alex retaliated, but with no reply.

Alex knew she wasn't completely out of the woods yet. She'd have to answer him sooner or later, but she at least took solace in assuming that her text response had been adequate and that Robotnik would at least give her until the weekend to give him her answer. Alex still wasn't sure what she was going to do about that. She did not want to go anywhere alone with Robotnik, and she certainly did not want to just hand over the powers of a Chaos Emerald to him. Besides that, there was no telling _how_ he intended to 'siphon' the Chaos energy out of her, nor whether it would be safe or cause her irreparable harm.

And what if he _couldn't_ get it out of her? Then what? Would he just... keep her? Force her to use her unstable abilities for his own nefarious purposes? Alex shuddered at the thought. No way she wanted any of that. She was not as gullible as he thought, and she'd proven it to him by giving him Sonic 3 and directing him to episode 26 of Sonic X. She was more than certain he would get the message; that she knew more about his treachery than he realized. And yet, she worried that perhaps it might only serve to anger him and earn her his wrath.

In hindsight, perhaps what she'd done had been incredibly dangerous. Bold, but stupid. But she still had two more days to think over how she was going to answer him. And in the life of a professional procrastinating college student, two days was a long time.

***

During the day, Sonic was going stir crazy, quite literally bouncing off the walls with nerves. He wanted to make sure that Alex would be okay, that Patrick would protect her with his life, and that they'd both make it back safe and sound. Throughout the day, Sonic found himself getting antsy and doing midair spins that went nowhere. God, what he wouldn't do to just get out and run! He was starting to feel like he was losing his mind! He needed to let off steam! He had to do... _something!_ The only thing which stopped him from doing anything rash was the knowledge that it would cause trouble for Alex.

Later that night, he finally heard voices in the hallway. It sounded like Alex and Patrick! Quickly, Sonic grabbed the kitchen chair again, brought it to the door and peeked out the peephole. Patrick was walking with Alex, his hands in his hoodie pockets as he spoke.

"...and he's convinced that he's seen the Red Devil _himself_ now. Bosley hasn't even been up to North Lake in, like, a year. And I severely doubt if there _was_ some new cryptid living in Scottstown, that it'd have anywhere to hide."

Alex laughed nervously. "Heh, heh... Y-Yeah, really," she said, thinking about her own little cryptid locked in her apartment and why he was there.

There really _was_ no place to hide in Scottstown. But poor Sonic. This was day four of being shut up in her apartment. He must be suffering major cabin fever by now. She had to do _something_ for him. Otherwise, he'd either go crazy or do something rash – like running away and exposing himself. And yet she hated keeping him there as though he were a prisoner. Perhaps her surprise tonight would be just what he needed.

"Well," said Alex, standing outside the door to her apartment. "Today was happily uneventful. Still, thank you so much! I felt so much better at work knowing I'd have a ride home. And the good news is Julie will be returning to work tomorrow so I can go back to my earlier shifts and not worry about going home late at night."

Patrick sighed through his smile. It would seem his time with Alex was coming to a swift end. She would no longer need a ride home from work. Patrick was glad that it meant she'd be a little safer, but he hated the idea that they wouldn't see one another after this, aside from the one class they shared together

"Thanks again, Patrick."

She turned towards the door, ready to head into her apartment. Patrick went wide-eyed. He was about to lose her! He had to say something! He had to act.

"A-Alex! Uh..."

Alex turned around. "Yeah?"

As her gaze fell upon him, he suddenly felt very much like a deer in the headlights. What was he going to say? What was he going to do? He had to say _something!_

"Um... Look, I was thinking... Maybe, if you have some time, we could, uh... you know... go grab a coffee or something sometime. They have that really good coffee shop and cafe on campus. Maybe we could meet up there?"

"Oh! Sure! Yeah, I love that little café. Are you busy tomorrow?"

"T-Tomorrow?" stammered Patrick. He had not expected her to accept so soon and it had thrown him for a loop. _Stop stuttering and say 'yes,' you idiot!_ " S-Sure!" He finally managed to blurt out. "I've only got classes in the early morning tomorrow, so that's fine with me!"

"Cool," said Alex, forever tucking that strand of hair behind her ear, even when there was not one to tuck. "I have a swim meet at three o'clock, but we could meet up after, if you want. Otherwise, there's always another time. You have my number, after all."

Through the peep hole, Sonic could see Alex blushing and tucking her hair behind her ear. She seemed pleased with Patrick's invite, if not a little shy and self-conscious. And, apparently, she had something called a 'swim meet' tomorrow. What was that? Some kind of swimming contest?

"Oh! You're on the swim team?" said Patrick. "Well, maybe I'll come to that, too. I can cheer you on."

Sonic's eyes widened. Patrick was gonna go? No way! If the Bus Boy was gonna go cheer her on, then _he_ should as well! _Maybe_ _I can find a way that_ I _could watch her, too!_ Perhaps it was time to throw on Liam's clothes again and sneak out.

Finally, it was settled. Patrick was going to attend Alex's swim meet, and then they'd grab coffee afterwards. Blushing, Alex nodded demurely, mumbling, "You don't have to, ya know. But if you really want to..." And then the two bade one another farewell.

Sonic quickly hopped off the chair, ran it back to the table, and bounced onto the couch, picking up a random issue of his comic and opening it to a random page as Alex opened the door. When she entered, she was the antithesis of what she'd been yesterday. She was smiling and humming to herself like a schoolgirl with a crush.

"Hey, Alex!" Sonic tossed aside the comic he wasn't really reading and zipped up to her. "How's it going?"

Alex grabbed him by the hands and twirled him around in a circle, giggling. "Guess what?" she said.

_'I have a date!'_ Sonic almost expected her to say, but instead...

"I had a much better day today and I'm not at all tired and I have a surprise for you!"

A part of him still suspected that much of her good mood had more to do with Patrick Miller, but the words _I have a surprise for you,_ made him grin and tilt his head curiously.

"A surprise? For me?"

"Here." She tossed him Liam's clothes. "Put these on. You'll have to go incognito until we get to where we're going."

"Wait..." Sonic looked down at Liam's clothes and then grinned up at her. "Are we going out?"

Alex grinned back and thrust a finger at him. "Yes! We are going out, Sonic! You and me! It's date night, buddy! We're gonna go out and get some exercise!"

Once Sonic was dressed in Liam's clothes and Alex had made certain the hood was pulled down nice and low over his face, they snuck out of the apartment and into the night. It was dark, the sun having long since set, but the moon was big and full and there was a plethora of stars twinkling in the sky.

The campus was still and silent. Nevertheless, Alex took Sonic by the hand and kept him close as they stole across the dark campus. Alex was dressed something like a thief in the night with a black hoodie over a black track suit. Sonic had to admit, this was pretty exciting, and he was enjoying the chance to get a breath of fresh air. Finally, they reached their destination – a large building beneath a huge glass dome.

Alex led him to the back of the building. He watched as she climbed up onto a pair of dumpsters. Then, she pried open a small, rectangular window that looked just large enough for her to squeeze through. Were they breaking and entering into a place? This was exciting!

Alex glanced down at him and grinned. Her teeth seemed to flash like pearls in the night. "You comin'?" Turning, she climbed through the window, expecting him to follow.

Grinning, Sonic flipped up onto the dumpster and leapt up to grab the window. He rolled in through the small opening and landed on a shiny hardwood floor. His entry through the window was a hell of a lot smoother than Alex's had been. She sneered playfully at him.

"Showoff," she muttered affectionately. "Welcome, Sonic, to the campus gym!" she announced, her voice echoing throughout the wide empty building.

"Whoa..." Sonic's voice echoed. "This place is huge! What's it for? What do you do here?"

Alex disappeared into a small closet-like room. When she returned, she had a large orange ball in her hands. "Well, _this_ for one thing." She tossed the ball into the basketball net at the end of the court, caught it on the rebound, and tossed it to Sonic with a grin. "Basketball."

"Basketball, huh?"

Sonic tossed the ball at the floor and watched it rebound. He grinned as he bounced the orange ball again and again. Then, he zipped up to the hoop, circled his way up around the pole until he was above the net. For a moment, it was almost as if he was hovering in midair as he tossed the ball down through the net only to zip back down and catch it before it even touched the floor. With a grin, he looked at Alex.

"What else have we got?"

Alex quickly closed her jaw which had dropped as she was granted a front-row seat to some impressive Sonic showboating. She shook her head.

"As impressive as that was," she said with a teasing smirk. "In basketball you have to constantly bounce the ball as you run with it. Otherwise, it's called 'traveling,' and that's an illegal move."

"Of course it was traveling, Alex! Did you see how fast I went to shoot it though that hoop?"

Alex sighed, but she was still smiling. "You're missing the point. But as for what else we've got... Well, look around you. Room to run. Oh, and of course there's the pool," she said, leading him away from the gymnasium and to a long pool with several lanes to swim down and a diving board at the far end.

"This is where I'll be tomorrow. I've missed a couple practices, so hopefully I won't total botch the meet."

Sonic took mental note of this. So _this_ was where she was going to have her swimming contest. Now he knew how to get here and where she'd be.

"Though, you wouldn't be interested in the pool, obviously," she said, leading him away from it.

Sonic simply smirked. "Yeah, not really into that."

"Honestly," she said, shaking her head. "I don't understand how you haven't learned to swim. When you think about the fact that Earth is a planet mostly made up of water – and _your_ planet as well, I'd imagine, seeing as it has to sustain life – that's just one other easy way to die. You really should learn some time."

"You're starting to sound like Monk," said Sonic with a shake of his head. "He always got on my case about not being able to swim. I just couldn't figure it out. I dunno." He shrugged nonchalantly.

Alex led him to the weight training room. "This is mostly for strength training, but there are treadmills and ellipticals here, too. I'd be a little too afraid to let you run on a treadmill, though," she added with a nervous chuckle. "You might run so fast you'd break it."

"Eh, probably. Not really worth the risk."

"Yeah. Besides, that's probably more Knux's speed anyway, huh?" she joked.

Sonic considered her comment. "You know, I'm not sure I've ever seen ol' Knuckle-head actually work out. Granted I don't know what he does in his personal time. He's always so reclusive up on Angel Island. I'll tell ya, I think he just needs to get out more. Anyway, I think I might just stick to that other room. You were right. There's lots of room to run in there. Let's go!"

They returned to the gymnasium.

"Well, Sonic... It's all yours," said Alex, gesturing to the outer perimeter of the court. "Your own indoor track. Run to your heart's content!"

"Thanks Alex. I really appreciate this." His hands went to the bottom of the hoodie, looking to peel it off. But he hesitated as he glanced questioning at Alex. "Oh, is it okay for me to hop out of these? I feel like they'll only slow me down."

"Sure. Strip. Streak to your heart's content. I'll avert my gaze," she added teasingly.

Soon, Liam's clothes were folded into a nice pile beside Alex on the bleachers. Sonic thrust a hand towards her and said, "Now stand back."

He knelt down in a runner's position before breaking out into a relatively normal run; a human running speed, or at least the pace of, perhaps, an Olympic runner. But the longer he ran, the faster he went. And he went faster... and faster... and faster still! Alex tried to follow him with her eyes, even to the point of not blinking, but she couldn't keep up and eventually her eyes began to tear.

"Damn," she said shaking her head with a smile. "This is so cool."

The faster he went, the windows and the glass dome began to rattle in the turbulence from his speed, and Alex had to call out a warning not to go so fast as to create a sonic boom. By some miracle, she managed to yell loud enough to be heard over the constant woosh of his running. Sonic heeded her words and slowed a little. He didn't want to wreck the place, especially given the fact that they snuck in without permission.

Alex wasn't sure how many circuits Sonic had gone before he finally stopped. With a flipping jump and a roll across the floor ending in something of a baseball slide, Sonic returned to her and popped back to his feet.

"Whooo! That's what I'm talking about."

Satisfied that he had stretched his legs, Sonic and Alex then took turns passing the basketball back and forth and shooting hoops.

"So," said Alex, trying to show off with a layup only to have it bounce off the rim. "How do you like your surprise?"

"Oh man, this has been great! It really relieved some serious pent-up tension! I'm so glad we did this."

Alex smiled a big smile. She was glad she could make him happy. It was much better to see him like this, being himself, instead of the way he'd been, all cooped up in the apartment.

"If we're careful," she said, "We could do this maybe a couple times a week. Every night might be too risky. But so long as we don't get caught, I don't see why we couldn't pull it off."

Sonic loved the idea of coming back to the gym. Though, that implied that Alex thought he was going to be on Earth for a while. Granted, he had no way of knowing how soon he'd be returning home, but it would have to happen sooner or later. Alex seemed to have forgotten that little fact. But Sonic wasn't overly worried about that. He would stay on Earth as long as was necessary for him do so.

"Shoot the ball up there." Sonic pointed to Alex where to throw the ball, off to the right of the hoop.

When she shot it, Sonic ran past her, launched himself upwards, caught the ball in midair, performed a flip, and slam-dunked the ball through the hoop. Alex laughed as she watched him hang from the rim.

"Hey, don't get stuck up there. If you do, I won't be able to get you down."

With a grin and a thumbs up, Sonic dropped to the ground, landing lithely on his feet.

They shot some more hoops until Alex had utterly worn herself out. Then, exhausted, they laid side by side on the floor of the gymnasium, gazing up at the night sky through the glass dome above.

"Do the stars look the same on your planet, Sonic?" asked Alex. Then, blushing, she smacked a hand to her face. "Sorry. That's kind of a trite question, isn't it?"

Sonic raised up on one elbow to look at her. "Hey, don't be like that. What's wrong with asking a simple question? I mean..." Sonic lowered onto his back and looked up at the sky again. "I don't know... I guess I never really paid much attention. I was always moving too fast to take much time to look around. But that's just the way I've always been, especially after Monk died."

Alex frowned, still staring at the sky. "Guess that's something we have in common," she said softly. "We both miss our dads."

Their dads... Yeah, Sonic supposed that Monk really _was_ the closest thing he ever had to a dad. After all, he didn't know who his real parents were. Monk, however, filled that position perfectly. And now, here he was. Monk was gone. And for Alex, her dad was gone. He supposed that he and Alex really _did_ have something in common.

"But hey," she said, "At least you've got your friends. Ya know, Tails and Knuckles..." She trailed off, frowning again as she realized that he was very much separated from the two of them. "Sorry. That was thoughtless of me."

"No way, Alex. Not at all."

Alex chewed her lip as she watched the stars twinkle above. "Do you think maybe they're out there too, somewhere? Here on Earth, I mean? Or do you think it's just you and Robotnik?"

Sonic shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe we'll find them out here one of these days. But if not... then I guess you'll just have to be satisfied with hanging out with little ol' me."

"I could never get tired of _you_ , Sonic," she said, smiling wistfully. "I know I can't keep you here forever... even though there's a selfish part of me that would kind of want to."

Sonic smiled as he continued to gaze up at the night sky. He liked spending time with Alex. And the idea of spending a long period of time with her was admittedly appealing. However, being cooped up and not getting the chance to run freely... that idea he _couldn't_ stand.

Alex was quiet for a long time as they continued to stargaze. "Actually," she said softly, "When the time comes, I'd honestly contemplate the idea of going back with you – to _your_ world, I mean."

Sonic's eyes grew wide at her words. She'd... go back with him? He wasn't quite sure how to take that; though it did give him a warm feeling inside, one that seemed predominantly focused in his chest and cheeks.

"At least, I _would_ ," said Alex, frowning. "If it wasn't for Mom. Though sometimes... sometimes I wonder how much longer she'll... I mean, she's been sick for _so_ long..." Alex trailed off, her thoughts growing dark.

_And if I upset Robotnik, he might hasten that process,_ she thought, once more recalling the dire situation she had all but forgotten about during the day's distractions.

Sonic glanced over at her and shot up in alarm.

"Alex!"

She was flickering again. And this time was worse than the last! In fact, she was growing ever fainter, almost ghost-like.

"Alex, you're disappearing!"

Alex sat up with a gasp. "Wh-What? Oh no!"

She gazed down at her hands, her body... All of her was going transparent.

"S-Sonic... I-I think I'm c-chaos controlling and I c-can't... I c-can't stop it!"

This was the worst case Sonic had seen. It had never gotten this bad when he was with her. The last time, he'd gotten her to control it. To breathe. To calm her mind and body. But this time Alex couldn't stop Chaos Control from happening. She was frightened, and she was crying out to the only one she thought could help her.

"Oh God! Sonic, I'm scared! H-Help me! Please!" She reached out her hand to him, crying out his name. Sonic took a hold of her with both hands, almost surprised that he was able to. For a moment, he'd thought for sure that his hands would pass right through her. He held her tightly.

"Alex! Hang on!"

But the moment Sonic embraced her, they both disappeared.

***

Something about this leap was different than the ones before. For a moment, Alex was swirling in a void of absolute oblivion. She felt herself losing her grip on reality; felt herself spiraling farther and farther away from her point of origin until she felt a strange sensation. It was almost like a tugging at her mind and her chest. Something was calling to her. She could hear it ringing faintly in ears. And in that moment, she was filled with the desire – no, the absolute need – to go to it.

_I'm coming,_ she thought.

They spiraled once more and then it was over.

This was the second time, recently, that Sonic underwent Chaos Control; the second time he felt as though he were being yanked in every direction at the same time. Despite this, his hands had kept their tight grasp on Alex's arm, refusing to let go of her for anything.

When he felt solid ground beneath him once more, Sonic opened his eyes to find himself lying in a small glade in the middle of the woods. The only light by which to see was that of the full moon streaming through the break in the trees above their heads. Where, exactly, were they? Just what was the rhyme or reason behind _where_ Alex Chaos Controlled to?

Alex was lying beside him. She was very still. For a moment, Sonic was frightened. He gave her arm a few shakes, trying to rouse her.

"Alex? Hey, Alex! Are you okay?"

Alex groaned and, slowly, her eyes fluttered open. "S-Sonic...?"

Sonic breathed a sigh of relief. "Man, Alex," he said with a soft smile. "Thank goodness you're all right."

She sat up with a gasp, her eyes big and wide. At first, Sonic thought for sure she might be frightened over their strange new surroundings. But to his surprise, she said, "It's here..." and scrambled to her feet, suddenly frantic. "It's here!" she exclaimed again. And without a second thought, she plunged headlong into the woods, heedless of branches and brambles as she ran, desperate to get to... something.

This seemed like some seriously rash behavior, especially for Alex. Just what had gotten into her? Had she hit her head when they chaos controlled? Whatever it was, she was running deeper and deeper into the woods, and if she wasn't careful, she was bound to get lost.

"What're you doing, Alex? Hey! Alex!!"

Sonic jumped to his feet in pursuit, worried that Chaos Control had scrambled her brain. He easily caught up with her and matched her pace.

"Alex! Where are you going? What do you mean 'It's here?'"

Alex shook her head. "I-I don't know," she stammered. "It just... It feels like something's calling me. Almost like I'm being pulled. I can't explain it. All I know is I have to go to where it is."

Sonic had no idea what she was going on about. He was really beginning to worry that the constant fluctuations of chaos energy was having a negative effect on her.

Alex continued to run, dodging trees and, sometimes, not very successfully dodging bushes and branches. She was already seriously scraped up by the time she tripped over a log and went sprawling headlong to the ground.

"NGH!"

"Alex!"

Sonic, who'd managed to dodge the log far more easily than her, doubled back to check on her.

"Alex, are you okay? You're not hurt, are you?"

"N-Not badly."

It looked like a pretty nasty fall, but she didn't seem seriously injured. It was then Sonic felt something; a sensation that only someone who once had the power of the Chaos Emeralds imbued into them could feel. Just beyond Alex's outstretched arm, resting in the grass in the path of a silver moonbeam was a shimmering gemstone that Sonic recognized at once.

"No way..." Sonic quickly snatched up the shining white gem.

As she pushed herself up onto her hands and knees, Alex's eyes fell on the object in Sonic's hand. "W-Wait... Is that...?"

"Alex, I think what you were feeling was a Chaos Emerald!"

"R-Really?"

Ignoring the cuts on her arms and the small trickle of blood from where she'd bit her lip, Alex moved closer, her large brown eyes reflecting the emerald shining in the moonlight.

"Wow..." she breathed. "You mean, I chaos controlled us to a Chaos Emerald? _That's_ what I was feeling? That's amazing! But... how?"

Sonic turned to face Alex. The white emerald seemed to glow all the brighter the closer he brought it to her. He lifted it up, letting her have a closer look at it.

"What was it that Tails said...?" he murmured, trying to recall for her edification. "Chaos Emeralds are drawn to each other. You know, like magnets? And if you've got chaos energy running all through you, then no doubt... you can feel where these bad boys are. You're almost like an emerald tracker, Alex."

"Really? That's great! That means I really _can_ help you after all!"

Sonic grinned. That wasn't a bad idea. Especially if they could find them before Robotnik got his hands on them. Alex watched as he tossed the emerald into the air and caught it in his hand again. It looked like a piece of crystalized moonlight. She was mesmerized.

"Hey, do you think I could hold it?"

Sonic looked at the white emerald again, chewing his lip in a contemplative fashion. Was it safe for her to hold one in her hand? After all, what if it caused her to chaos control again?

"Well... all right. But in case anything weird happens to you, I'm gonna hold onto you."

Alex nodded but said nothing. She was too excited, too in awe over the fact that she was about to hold a Chaos Emerald. Sonic's free hand clasped Alex's as he carefully placed the emerald in her other.

The moment it touched her palm, it began to glow all the brighter. And Alex... Alex was shining like a star. The effect was celestial, almost angelic in a way.

"Whoa..." said Sonic.

But Alex took no notice of how she looked. Instead, she was focused on the emerald and how she felt. Alex closed her eyes. She could feel the emerald's power speaking to something inside her, taming a wild torrent that roiled within.

"Wow..." she breathed. "It's... It's crazy. I feel good. Like, really good. In fact, I feel better than I have since the REMgage incident. The headache I've had ever since... It's almost like the emerald is drowning it out." When she opened her eyes, they were full of the silver moonlight refracting off the emerald. Now it was Sonic who was mesmerized.

"Alex," he said. "You're..." _Beautiful,_ he thought he was going to say. But why would he say that? He couldn't say that to her. Instead, he smiled and said, "You're glowing like a star!"

"Huh? Really?" Alex glanced down at herself, for she hadn't yet noticed. What she saw made her gasp. "Woah! You're right! This is... I don't know. I'm not sure how I feel about this. It's kinda creepy. But also... heh... kinda cool. Just so long as I'm not radioactive."

As though this thought alarmed her, she gazed at him with wide eyes filled with starlight and moonlight and silver gemstones, entrancing him in a way nothing else ever had.

"Y-You don't think I'm radioactive, do you?"

For a moment, Sonic just stared at her with his mouth hanging open in awe. But when he caught himself just staring, he shook his head.

"Wait, what? Radioactive?"

Alex waited with baited breath for his answer. When it came to Chaos Emeralds – _real-life_ Chaos Emeralds, anyway – Alex didn't really know much about them.

Sonic thought about it for a moment, then laughed. "Alex, if you're radioactive, then when I have the power of seven of these bad boys flowing inside me, I must be _nuclear!_ "

Alex laughed. "Oh, you're nuclear, all right," she said, which was met with a grin from Sonic. He interpreted this as nothing less than a compliment.

"No, you're not radioactive, Alex," he assured her. 'You're just... radiant." Sonic crossed his arms over his chest and nodded, as if to confirm his own words as truth.

Alex blushed. "Thanks," she murmured, tucking a stray hair behind her ear as she often did when she got bashful.

Sonic always thought this was a cute little quirk, but that hair never stayed where she sent it. Made him wonder why she even bothered.

"Man," breathed Alex. "I can't believe I'm really holding a Chaos Emerald! This is _so_ cool! And Sonic..." Her gaze met his and she grinned. "You know what this means, don't you? We're one step closer to getting you back to your world!"

"Uh... yeah!" he replied with dwindling enthusiasm, his shoulders slumping ever so slightly. "That's great."

Alex tried to keep a cheerful face for Sonic. She knew how badly he wanted to go home, and she wanted him to be back, safe and happy, where he belonged. But just thinking about sending him back and never seeing him again made her chest feel tight. Perhaps it was selfish, but she hoped they didn't find the rest of the Chaos Emeralds _too_ quickly.

Sonic turned away, putting his back to Alex and pretending to study their surroundings. He didn't want to show her how disappointed he was by the idea of going back to his world and leaving her behind.

"Speaking of getting home," he said, "We're gonna have to figure where _we_ are _now_... and how we're getting _you_ back home."

Alex blinked and looked around her as though realizing for the first time how utterly lost she was. "Oh! That's right." She continued to glance around at the dark forest that surrounded them and shivered. "Shit... I-I have no idea where we are." Her gaze returned to Sonic, her eyes wide and fretful. "This is really bad! We're lost and you don't have your disguise! What are we gonna do, Sonic?"

Sonic didn't like seeing Alex afraid. He didn't like seeing her in any sort of distress. If he had his way, she'd always have a smile on her face. And yet, he couldn't deny to himself that he liked seeing those wide shimmering eyes aglow with white chaos light, those eyes pleading with him, her hero, for help.

"I know just the thing to do," he assured her.

He plucked the emerald from her hand, watching the glow fade from her. It was sort of disappointing, but he had more important matters to attend to. Sonic took Alex's hand and held the Chaos Emerald in his other. Sonic closed his eyes and, in his mind, focused hard on the gym and where they'd left the clothes he'd borrowed from her cousin, Liam.

"Okay! Here we go again. Hold on tight, Alex." He thrust the hand which held the emerald into the air and shouted. "CHAOS CONTROL!"

The emerald's white light engulfed them both in a glowing sphere. Alex shut her eyes and squeezed Sonic's hand tightly. With a flash of white light, they blinked out of the forest and reappeared back in the gymnasium in a much smoother Chaos Control than Alex was used to.

"Hey! We're back!" she exclaimed, as though she almost expected it to have gone horribly wrong. She gazed at Sonic admiringly. "You're gonna have to teach me how to do that," she said. "My chaos control is a bit more chaos and a lot less control." She tilted her head thoughtfully. "Maybe the difference is using an emerald versus, like, being one yourself. But still, if you can control yourself in Super Sonic form, I _should_ be able to at least keep myself from chaos controlling out of... well... control."

Sonic gaped at her. The way she was talking made it sound like this had happened more than just this instant. Still gripping the Chaos Emerald in his palm, Sonic crossed his arms and began tapping his foot. It wasn't until then that Alex realized that she'd slipped up.

"So... this _wasn't_ the first time you've Chaos Controlled. And when the hell were you planning on telling me? Jeez, Alex. Chaos Control can be dangerous if it's not done correctly. Is that what all that flickering has been about? You on the brink of Chaos Control? Why didn't you tell me this was happening?"

Alex chewed her lip and lowered her gaze ashamedly. Suddenly, despite being the elder of the two, as well as the host on a world that was more hers than his, Alex was like a little girl being scolded by her hero.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "It's happened a couple times. I promise I haven't been _trying_ to do it. It just sorta happens. The first time was when I was riding the bus home from the hospital and I fell asleep and woke up at my apartment. That was before you even showed up. The second time was the day after Robotnik showed up at Edgar Roman's place. I fell asleep in Calculus, thinking how nice it would be to get a coffee, and I woke up... well, in the coffee shop. Luckily, no one seemed to notice then. But the worst part is—"

Alex stopped abruptly. She'd been about to say, _Robotnik knows,_ but caught herself just in time.

"Uh... the worst part is, I seem to be doing it subconsciously. The flickering doesn't always result in Chaos Control. That seems to happen when I get emotional – specifically, scared or upset. As for not telling you..." She sighed, wringing her hands in her lap. "I just didn't want to worry you. I thought if you knew it was happening, you'd start following me around. And then, if you got spotted, the military would get involved and then that whole awful scenario where you get captured and..." She couldn't finish the rest of that sentence as she lowered her head and mumbled, "Then it would be all my fault."

Sonic was hardly mad at Alex, even if it _did_ sound like he was scolding her. He was just worried about her. There was her stalker, which she had yet to tell him about, and now he was learning this! And Alex had deemed it necessary to keep it from him because she was afraid that someone from the government was going to take him away? Nonsense. Sonic shook his head.

"C'mon, Alex. I thought we were friends. If something that's related to these Chaos Emeralds is going on, who are you going to trust with that info except the one guy who's _more_ than familiar with all that?"

Alex blinked in surprised as he took her hand and squeezed it tightly.

"Alex, you can't keep this stuff to yourself. I mean... don't you trust me?"

"O-Of course I trust you!" she said quickly, not wishing to offend him. "More than anyone! But for all your heroics and kindness and selflessness, you're also reckless and I just... I don't want to lose you!"

Sonic's eyes went wide as she suddenly threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

"I know it must be weird for you," she said quietly, "But it's like I've always known you, and then when Dad died, like I lost you. If I lose you again, it'd be like losing a part of _me_ again. Sorta like losing my Dad again. I know that doesn't make sense. You're not my dad. But... I don't know... you were always a part of him. Your doll was in my cradle, for God's sake."

At this admission, she was glad he couldn't see her face at the moment, for she was blushing quite embarrassedly. "What if _I_ was the one who got you hurt? I just..."

"Alex..."

She released him, running a hand through her hair. "I just feel responsible for you is all. But you're right. I should've told you about the Chaos Control. Will you help me?" she asked. "Please?"

Her eyes met his, searching them for any sign of disgust over all the ridiculous things she'd said to him. What she found was nothing but that encouraging, positive smile on his face; a smile of someone who wanted nothing but her happiness.

Sonic placed a hand on her shoulder, his green eyes locked on hers. "I'll always help, Alex. In any possible way that I can. As long... as you trust me." He offered her a warm, friendly smile. More than just a smirk, it seemed to say that everything was going to be all right.

Alex nodded, for a moment, not trusting herself to speak. In that moment, she was tempted to tell him about her encounter with Robotnik at work, about what he wanted from her, the 'deal' he wanted to make with her, that he was demanding an answer, and the alternative should she refuse to cooperate with him. She was so tempted. After all, here was her hero telling her to trust him and not to hide things from him. And most assuredly, if anyone could keep her safe from Robotnik, it was Sonic.

But what about her mother?

Robotnik had made it abundantly clear that any word of it breathed to Sonic would place her mother in harm's way. Surely not even Sonic could be in two places at once. There was no way he could protect both her _and_ her mother _and_ not get spotted and captured by Earth's military forces.

Thus, it was with a heavy heart that Alex forced herself to smile at him and say, "Yes, I trust you. It's a deal." And though her smile was sincere enough to fool Sonic, deep down she felt lower than dirt.

Sonic returned her smile. However, despite her words, he knew things were notyet settled between them. Because it wasn't just about the Chaos Controlling. There was the matter of the apparent stalker.

Sonic waited expectantly. Maybe she'd tell him. Maybe now she'd let him in on the secret. But it wasn't to be. She still kept that between herself and that Patrick guy. Sonic didn't let on that he knew she was still keeping something from him. Maybe, in time, she would trust him with that, too. But he wouldn't force her.

_One step at a time. She'll get there._

He hoped.

***

Elsewhere, in the middle of North Lake, a far more sinister event was taking place. In the bowels of a camouflaged dome-shaped base, in a room only illuminated by several video monitors, Dr. Robotnik sat back in his large metallic chair, his fingers arched just an inch or so away from his nose. On the large center screen, he watched a piece of animation recommended to him by Alexandra Parker. Episode 26, according to the note scrawled for him on the receipt she'd given him, was of some import, and Robotnik intended to learn in what way.

To the best of his knowledge, what Alexandra had apparently bestowed upon him was a video on digital versatile disc, what they called a 'DVD' of a Sonic the Hedgehog cartoon from the early 2000s. Although it was 26 episodes into the series, it was easy enough to figure out what the synopsis was.

Sonic, his friends, and himself – Dr. Robotnik, or Eggman as he seemed to have been nicknamed – had been transported via Chaos Control from Sonic's world to Earth, befriended the humans there, specifically a child named Christopher Thorndyke and his wealthy family, and were trying to collect all seven Chaos Emeralds to recreate Chaos Control to return home. The first most notable thing Robotnik came to realize was that Sonic was the hero in this pop culture franchise, and _he_ , Robotnik, was the villain. And it was becoming increasingly apparent the reason Alex had suggested he watch this episode, specifically.

Knuckles the Echidna, eager to return home, and gullible as always, decided the best course of action was to strike a truce with Eggman in the interest of working together so that they all could return home. He convinced the reluctant but well-meaning child, Chris, to join him in his efforts, knowing that Sonic would never agree to make a deal with his enemy. The idiot echidna and simpleton child struck their deal with Eggman, and as part of the bargain, gave Eggman – at his insistence – all the Chaos Emeralds to hold onto.

After this, of course, the villain of the series revealed that it had been a trick all along and he didn't care about returning home, as world conquest was his only ambition, and he could conquer Earth just as easily as Sonic's world. Thus tricked, Knuckles was ejected from the aircraft and the child was taken prisoner. It was all too easy to see how the plot of this episode paralleled his own interaction with Alexandra.

He had attempted to make a 'deal' with Miss Parker, insisting that he wanted to return Sonic to _his_ world as much as she, and that he fully intended to do so, as long as she handed over a Chaos Emerald – in this case, herself – in order for him to accomplish such a thing. Alexandra, in turn, had directed him to this asinine cartoon to show him just what the true situation was: She knew just how he operated. She was fully aware that he was attempting to trick her and she would not be played the fool.

As the end credits rolled to the obscenely grating music from the intro, Sage returned from the assignment Robotnik had bestowed upon him. In his hands, he held the Sega Genesis with the Sonic 3 cartridge implanted firmly within it.

"Master," he said, inclining his head. "I have determined the situation as it stands to be most dissatisfactory to you. It would seem the people of Earth praise Sonic as a hero and paint you the villain. Furthermore, the synopsis of this particular game seems to involve you tricking the echidna into thinking that Sonic and Tails seek the Chaos Emeralds for nefarious purposes, and furthermore, intend to steal the Master Emerald as a misdirection so that you might take them for yourself. It appears Miss Parker was attempting a tactful approach at communicating her knowledge of your lack of transparency in her _own_ situation."

Robotnik gave no indication that he'd heard a single thing Sage had said. As the cartoon came to an end, he and Sage were left in silence. After a brief moment, Robotnik clenched his teeth and slammed his fists on the arms of his chair.

"That little BITCH!"


	12. Chapter 12

Alex closed her eyes and took a slow deep breath, trying to ignore the words of the commentators below. They were for the audience anyway. Alex wore her Scottstown swimsuit, a formfitting black and purple pattern that went well with her brown-purple hair and hugged her frame in a manner that was meant to be functional, but provided more than a functional appreciation for her admirer.

Patrick had found himself a good seat, smack dab in the middle of the bleachers for Alex's swim meet. So far, he'd seen such decent competition today from a lot of young women in swimsuits. But Patrick's attention was on one and only one. And that was the girl standing atop the three-meter diving board. His gaze was fixed on her as he silently prayed that she would pull the dive off well. And as much as Patrick Miller was excited to see her dive, he wasn't alone. There were others who had come to watch her.

A pair of big green eyes peered out from a red hoodie beneath the shadow of the bleachers, watching through an unoccupied space between spectators. Sonic, wearing Liam's clothes once more, nervously chewed his thumb as he watched Alex prepare for her dive. Sonic got nervous about very few things in life. But water... oh, how he hated water. He even hated watching _other_ people go into the water. Although he knew Alex could swim, he hated the anticipation of waiting for her to dive.

At three meters above the pool, Alex stood at the edge of the diving board, prepping herself for her first dive of the meet. She was the last to perform and felt the heavy burden of responsibility to do well. People always remembered the first and last divers the best. If she screwed up, everyone would know. And somewhere in the audience was Patrick Miller. That knowledge further inspired her desire to perform well.

"Alexandra Parker, 205 B 3.0 on the back with a somersault pike," the commentators announced.

Patrick held his breath as Alex stepped to the edge of the board and put her back to the pool. Once more, she closed her eyes, finding her center. Then, she did a backwards somersault off the board. Sonic covered his eyes, only to peek between two fingers as she dove into the water.

"Phenomenal dive!"

"Smooth entry, straight as a pencil into the water."

The panel of five judges gave their scores: 8.5, 9.0, 8.5, 8.5, 8.5.

"Wow!" said the female commentator, "That's 76.50 - this is the girl to beat! That is amazing. We've got a nine in there!"

"First time we've seen a nine today, Barb."

Patrick jumped to his feet and cheered, clapping enthusiastically. Sonic let out a sigh of relief. She was alive! And Sonic was happy for her. And yet still Alex's audience didn't end there. Two others had their eyes on her from the topmost bleachers. One was a large hulk of a man wearing a Scottstown college jacket and baseball cap. The other, tall and slender, wore a hoodie and a pair of black and white track pants. The larger looked bored out of his mind.

"I don't get it," he muttered to the other. "Why don't we just go down there and grab her?"

The thinner one kept his eyes on the pool area. "The doctor requested this to be a stealth mission. We are to follow, observe, and strike when the moment is right."

The larger rolled his eyes and groaned as he leaned his face into his palm. "Ugh... This is so _boring_!"

The smaller's gaze moved to the group of young women, dressed in their form-fitting swimsuits. "Oh, I don't know," he said with the slightest of smiles. "I think this is one of the better missions we've undertaken." His gaze moved to Alex, specifically. "Besides, the doctor wants to maintain a low profile on this world until he's ready to make his... official debut."

The larger man sighed, rolling his eyes. "I guess so."

Alex smiled up at the score board.

_Yes!_

She'd done well. Exceedingly well, in fact! She was so pleased with herself that she realized she was rather sorry that Sonic couldn't be here to watch her do something she was actually good at for once. As it was, she had barely mentioned her swim meet to him anyway, knowing that there might be a good chance curiosity would get the better of him and lead him to stray into the public. That must _not_ happen.

Alex had five more dives to perform, and so she made her way back up the ladder slowly, doing her best to conserve the energy needed to perform her dives. Boy, she seriously hoped Patrick wasn't getting bored down there. Most people didn't consider swimming and diving much of a sport. It was an acquired taste.

Her following three dives were equally phenomenal, the scores of which moved her into first place. Her fifth dive was a 107 B, forward 3.5 somersault pike. She ran and bounced off the board, performing the somersault flawlessly.

Alex was proving to be way more graceful and far more coordinated than Sonic ever could have believed from her. He covered his eyes, peeking through his fingers each and every single time she dove. But one thing he really had to admit - he loved watching her flip through the air. When she curled up and spun before plunging into the water, Sonic was captivated. Even if he was terrified, he loved how gracefully her form rolled through the air. He was spellbound.

"Great height off that board."

"Incredible every time."

"Great entry. Fantastic dive."

Alex's five scores were 8.5, 8.0. 8.5, 7.5, 9.0.

"Another nine on the board there, Barb! Alex now holds the school record for the three meter!"

"That's amazing, Derek!"

"For her final dive, Alexandra will be performing a 5337 D reverse 1.5 somersault, 3.5 twist free."

Alex did a high leap into the air and a midair twirl ending in a forward dive into the water. Patrick cheered and clapped perhaps louder than anyone for Alex. And one thing was absolutely certain; he'd also never expected her to be so graceful. Watching her rotate, stretch out, the water droplets spraying off of her tanned body as she spun... It was like she moved in slow motion. God, she was perfect. And he was certain he could watch her do this all day.

"Wow! I am speechless, Barb."

Treading water, Alex gazed up at the score board and grinned.

9.0, 8.0, 8.0, 7.5, 8.5.

"And she outdoes herself! Alexandra Parker with the gold in the women's three-meter diving with a final score of 436.45," announced Derek.

Alex fist punched the air and swam to the side of the pool and climbed out. More than anyone now, she wished her parents could be here to see her first big win. At the very least, she'd have to call her mother later to let her know how it went.

Alex walked past the spectators, barefoot and dripping, never noticing Sonic beneath the bleachers even as she walked right past him, and far too embarrassed to look into the stands to see if Patrick was there. She didn't want to look as though she were showboating, even though it took everything in her power not to grin and cheer and do another fist pump. Besides, she received plenty enough praise as she joined her team on the sidelines. The Scottstown girls team was all cheers and first bumps and claps on the back, and Alex was the most radiant among them.

The large spectator in the top back corner of the bleachers leaned back against the wall behind him. "Is this over, yet?"

The thinner man's eyes honed in sharply on Alex. "Hardly," he said with a smirk. "I think I'm just getting started."

It _was_ just getting started, or at least they'd reached the halfway point. With the diving portion of the competition over, next was the actual swimming portion of the meet. In the six lanes across, three schools competed. The commentators announced that there was to be something called a relay medley to determine the winning team. The referee blew the whistle and the first six swimmers dove backwards off the boards and into the water.

"Starting off here with the backstroke," said Barb.

"Scottstown in the lead," said Derek.

The swimmers reached the end of the pool, turned, and went back. The moment they touched the side of the pool, the next group of swimmers dove in.

"Here we go, into the breast stroke."

"We've got Scottstown and NYU neck and neck for the breast."

The swimmers reached the wall, turned underwater, and shot off back across the pool.

"Scottstown turning first."

"But NYU with that pullout."

"Scottstown good with the turn underwater."

"NYU catching up. NYU and Scottstown neck and neck."

The next six divers launched off their platforms.

"And a good dive from Scottstown," said Barb.

"Straight underwater from NYU. Catching up," said Derek.

"For the butterfly, NYU doing a good job fighting back. It's neck and neck between them and Scottstown."

"NYU taking the lead."

The six swimmers reached the end of the pool and the final six dove into the water.

"And there's Scottstown's closer, Alexandra Parker, the freshman, with the freestyle."

"But it's still NYU with the lead!"

"Let's see if Scottstown can catch up!"

Patrick was on the edge of his seat, cheering for Scottstown all the way. But when Alex dove in, Scottstown be damned, he was cheering for her. His feet were stamping on the metal beam as he cheered her on.

Sonic found himself mesmerized. Now _this_ was some serious action; true competition in every sense of the word. It was a good thing no one was sitting where Sonic was hiding, because his gloved hands latched onto the metal beam of the bleacher seat as he watched the race excitedly, especially when it was Alex's turn to dive in. And as slow as Alex was on land, in the water, she was like a fish - fast and in her element. Sonic was still anxious, but also very enthusiastic. Alex was so graceful in the water, almost like she was a different person.

"About 10 yards to go. Scottstown in second. NYU in first."

"Scottstown trying to close!"

Alex was catching up. So close... But not enough.

"And it's NYU with the gold! Scottstown in second, and it looks like the bronze will go to Ohio."

"Great job by Scottstown and NYU. Scottstown tried to close that gap there, but NYU was just too far ahead."

"Still, Alexandra Parker takes home gold for Scottstown in the diving portion of the competition. And it was a close race."

"It was. I think we can all be proud of Scottstown, Derek."

"Yes, and I think we can expect much from Scottstown's new freshman recruit."

"Indeed! We'll be keeping an eye on Alexandra Parker. She's shaping up to be a fantastic recruit. Can't wait to see what the rest of the season will bring."

With the competition over, the smaller of the two in the high seats stood up.

"Let's go. Gotta beat the rush."

The larger grinned. "Finally. _Now_ we go get her?"

"Patience. We'll see her next move. Hurry now."

Alex was wobbly as her teammates reached down and helped her out of the water. She lifted her goggles and wiped at her eyes. Patrick had to wonder... was she merely wiping water off her face or was she crying? Still, second place wasn't so bad, was it?

Her teammates gave her supportive claps on the back. No one seemed upset with her. Maybe she was just hard on herself. There was a brief award ceremony in which the schools were awarded their corresponding trophies - gold for NYU, silver for Scottstown, and bronze for Ohio. But Scottstown got a blue ribbon for winning the high dive competition, and Alexandra herself was awarded a gold medal. With that, it was over and the girls returned to the locker room to get changed.

As the two suspicious men slipped away without notice, Patrick got to his feet as the crowd departed, eager to meet up with Alex after she finished in the locker room. Sonic, however, knew that his participation here was at an end.

With a sigh, he murmured, "See ya at home, Alex..."

He wished that _he_ could wait around and see her like Patrick was going to. But it wasn't to be. He had to get back. After all, he promised he wouldn't leave the apartment without her. She couldn't know he was here. And she wouldn't. With another sigh, Sonic took off.

Patrick waited as the crowd cleared out of the pool area, meeting up with their loved ones who had competed during the meet. He couldn't help but be a bit excited. This was the first time in a while that he was actually waiting to meet up with a girl. The last one had been Bosley's cousin, Lara, and _that_ had been an unmitigated disaster. They had absolutely nothing to talk about and Patrick later found out that she'd only gone on a date with him as a favor she owed to Bosley. Not exactly a particularly successful love life, recently. But now, Patrick had high hopes. Not only did he appear to have much in common with Alex, but she was... God, he was almost certain that he'd been drooling when he watched her dive.

When Alex emerged from the locker room, she was wearing a pair of track pants and a Scottstown University Swimming jacket open over her bathing suit. Her gold medal was proudly pinned over the breast of the jacket and she had a duffle bag slung over her shoulder. Inside was not only a change of clothes and a hair drier (neither of which she bothered with, for she was eager to see Patrick Miller and there was nothing she could do to look date-nice right after a swim anyway), but also the Chaos Emerald she and Sonic had found last night. This she had taken without Sonic's permission.

Perhaps it was unwise and untrustworthy, but she just felt so much better when it was near. She didn't flicker nearly so much, even when she was nervous or upset, and her headaches were practically non-existent. And with the swim meet today, it was imperative she be at the top of her game. She hadn't wanted to be a liability, and so she borrowed the emerald and kept it in her duffle bag so it would be nearby at all times.

Much of the crowd had already dispersed, but she spotted Patrick waiting for her. Blushing, she tucked a lock of damp hair behind her ear and joined him.

"Hey," she greeted shyly. "I can't believe you actually came. You must've been bored to tears."

"Are you kidding me? This was great! _You_ were great! I mean look at you! You're a gold medal diver! That's fantastic!"

Alex blushed and absently fingered her medal. "Thanks," she said bashfully. "It's actually the first time I won something, so I'm glad you were able to witness a rare moment of triumph for me." She lowered her gaze, "Especially since I blew the relay." She seemed a little down on herself for this, but a moment later, she shrugged and met his gaze once more. "Anyway, thanks for coming. I mean, you really didn't have to."

Patrick smiled and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah... well, I thought I'd come see just what it was that Alex Parker could do besides sneak out of class for coffee."

At first, Alex looked at him like she didn't know what he was talking about. Then, she remembered; it was the time she'd accidentally chaos controlled out of math class and ended up at the coffee shop. Patrick had commented on her disappearance the night he returned her book after driving her home from work, and she he told him she had 'snuck out.'

"Ah, right," she said with a laugh. "Good one." She shifted her duffle bag onto her other shoulder. "I, uh, brought a change of clothes and a hair dryer, but I didn't want to make you wait, so I didn't bother. But if you'd rather I got changed..."

She trailed off, waiting for his response as she stood in her hip-hugging track pants and sports jacket open over her form-fitting bathing suit. A drop of water fell from the end of her hair and trailed down her clavicle and into the swooping neckline of her bathing suit.

Patrick couldn't help but hyper focus on that drop of water, carefully watching its descent. "NO!" His cheeks turned red as he realized he'd practically yelled this. "Uh... I mean, you don't have to. You look great." His eyes widened in realization. "I _mean_... we should go before all the good tables are taken."

Alex lifted a single eyebrow. "Right... Because you saying that bit at the end made me retroactively not hear you say I look great." She punched him firmly but playfully on the shoulder. "Relax, Pat," she said, sounding, to her realization, embarrassingly like her current secret roommate. "I'll gladly take the compliment. And here I was worried I'd look a disaster and you'd be embarrassed to get coffee with me."

Patrick chuckled nervously. "No way. How could I possibly be embarrassed to be seen with a gold medalist?"

"Only silver in the relay," she mumbled.

"Team effort, team's silver. But _you_ single-handedly won gold for diving."

Alex smiled shyly, tucking that wet strand of hair back again. "Thanks, Patrick," she murmured.

As they walked past the pool, Alex's eyes skimmed over the bleachers. Even though it would have been a terrible idea and she would have had to reprimand him, a part of her had been hoping that perhaps she might catch of glimpse of Sonic lurking around, having come to watch her. But no dice. She let out a disappointed sigh. Still, it was for the best.

"Did you lose something?" asked Patrick, having caught her looking.

"It's just... I was sorta hoping to see another friend here, but he didn't come. It's okay, though. He really shouldn't."

Patrick's eyebrows lifted. "H-He...?"

"So, Patrick," she said casually, in a desire to change the subject. "What is it about girls' swimsuits you like so much?"

His cheeks immediately went red. "What? I, uh, well, it's... I didn't..." But then he spied her teasing grin and he glared playfully at her. "That's low, Alex Parker. That's a real low blow."

Alex merely laughed. Patrick Miller was easy to tease, and he was awfully cute when he got flustered. As they headed for the doors, Patrick arched an eyebrow.

"So... Did something happen?"

Alex froze. Oh no! What was he talking about? Between having Sonic the Hedgehog for a roommate, Dr. Robotnik as a potential stalker, and a Chaos Emerald in her duffle bag, she was keeping a lot of secrets lately. How well was she really guarding them? Had she slipped somewhere?

"Wh-What do you mean?"

"Well, just that you seem extra confident today."

Naturally, Alex's first thought was, _Well, yeah, I've got a Chaos Emerald in my duffle bag. I ought to be feeling pretty confident._

"You're practically glowing," he added.

Alex glanced down at herself in a panic, worried that she was literally glowing due to her proximity to the Chaos Emerald. She remembered all too well Sonic's comment from last night.

_You're glowing like a star!_

Thankfully, Patrick appeared to mean this more metaphorically than literally, for she was not glowing. The Chaos Emerald was safely tucked away in her duffle bag, granting her a reprieve from headaches and flickering, but with enough of a barrier between them that she wasn't lighting up like a Christmas tree.

"Well, I mean, yeah, I just won gold for diving. And a boy _did_ just tell me I look great, so yeah, I think I'm feeling pretty confident," she said, giving him a wide grin.

Patrick chuckled, loving that gamine grin she gave him. Yeah, this was an Alex Parker he thought he could really get to like.

As they stepped out of the gymnasium and out into the late September afternoon, Alex blinked up at the gray sky. "Huh... Looks like rain, doesn't it?" she asked, if only to get him away from troublesome topics.

Patrick frowned. "I hope not. I didn't bring an umbrella. I _was_ thinking we would just walk to the cafe, but I guess we can drive over. With your damp hair, I'd hate it if we got caught in the rain."

"With my damp hair, I don't think it would matter much. Far more devastating if I had bothered to dry it first. Besides, my butt is also damp, and I wouldn't want to put a wet bum-print on your car seat. I'm up for a brisk jaunt if you are. Come on, I'll race you!"

Patrick laughed and broke out into a run right along with her. "Don't get too cocky! You only got a silver in the race!"

"You're lucky you're cute, or else I'd push you off the high-drive for that comment," she said.

Patrick grinned playfully. "Oh? You think I'm cute?"

They took off in the direction of the coffee shop, teasing and coaxing each other the whole way. Perhaps the Chaos Emerald _was_ having a positive effect on Alex's mood, or maybe it was the gold medal or the fact that she was getting coffee with a cute boy. Whatever it was, it seemed to Alex that nothing could ruin this perfect day. Not even a little rain.

If only Alex realized that they were being carefully scrutinized from afar, she might have been better prepared for the disaster that was about to befall her. But alas...

"How about we just kill the boy and snag the girl?"

"What part of 'discretion' don't you understand?"

"Isn't that when something oozes out of you?"

"That's secretion, you dolt. We need to catch up to them. C'mon."

The two figures, one larger and one smaller followed in pursuit, maintaining a safe distance so as not to be spotted. But they weren't alone. A pair of large purple eyes glared after them from the bushes.

"They're after the emerald. But not if I can get it first!"

***

Several minutes later, Alex and Patrick were hunched over the counter at the coffee shop, panting out their orders.

"H-Hazelnut... latte... espresso... two shots..." gasped Alex, laughing at the incredulous expression on the barista's face. The woman glanced at Patrick with a single raised eyebrow, awaiting a second order in a similar cadence.

Patrick held onto the counter for a moment, breathing hard, raising a finger as he ordered. "Salted... Salted... Caramel... Iced... Mocha..."

Once they got their coffee, they took a seat by a small fireplace near the back of the café. "Oh man..." groaned Alex, holding her side. "I've got a stitch. That was so stupid," but she was grinning nonetheless.

Patrick slumped in his seat. "Phew, I haven't run like that in a while. I had asthma really bad as a kid. If I'd run like that when I was little, I woulda died."

"Well, shit, son. Don't die on me," said Alex breathlessly. "I've never gotten coffee with a guy before, so that would put a serious damper on the day." Having finally caught her breath, Alex took a sip of her latte. "Mmm. My dad and I used to race all the time," she said. "He always let me win, obviously. Of course, I didn't know it at the time. When I'd beat him, I'd turn around and tap my foot like Sonic, pretending to be waiting for him. Man, I was such a little shit," she laughed. "But Dad was a good sport."

Patrick smiled as he took a moment to appraise her, imagining a smaller version of herself tapping her foot Sonic style. "Yeah," he nodded. "Yeah, I could see that." He took a sip of his mocha. "You and your dad were big Sonic fans, huh? I honestly haven't played Sonic in a few years... except for that Sonic Mania game. That was pretty good. But really, I kinda fell off that series. I dunno, I think Sonic Adventure was really the last one I played? No, wait... I played the one with that black hedgehog. What was his name? Recolor The Character or something?"

"You mean Shadow? My Dad always called him Edgy the Hedgie. But seriously, dude? Sonic Adventure? That was like centuries ago! I think that came out, like, the year I was born or something."

"Yeah, yeah," said Patrick, waving her off. "I know. Ancient history. But my older sister used to be a bit of a gamer, and I've always had a fascination with older games. I feel like I got the short end of the stick not living in the 16 bit era. That was some of history's best gaming. Anyway, when you're looking at a career in video games, you kinda have to have an appreciation for _all_ of it. Old and new."

"Oh, that's right. You're majoring in programming or something, huh? So you want make video games?"

Patrick nodded.

"Wow," marveled Alex. "That is so cool!"

Patrick beamed.

"But how is it that Sonic Adventure 2 is the last Sonic game you played?"

Patrick shrugged. "I dunno. After a while, I guess I just started thinking Sonic was kinda lame."

"Hey, it's not his fault!" Alex insisted, ready to defend her best friend, only to flush and lower her gaze.

_Crap. Way to go, Alex, you idiot._

She cleared her throat and chuckled good humoredly. "I mean, it's clear Sega doesn't know how to handle their titular character anymore. The games haven't been good since my dad was a teenager, and the best one to come out recently wasn't even _made_ by Sega. But Sonic will always be cool. Um, th-that is, I mean..." Alex rubbed the back of her neck and averted her gaze. "Sometimes, growing up, it felt like Sonic was my best friend. My dad was always a Sonic fan, and being a shy and awkward kid, I didn't have a lot of friends, so I mostly just played Sonic with my dad. Though I'm in the same boat as you. I haven't played the games in years. Not since Dad died. But I recently got out his old stuff and started delving into it again. Kind of, ya know, reliving my childhood sort of thing."

Oh, if Patrick only knew how much of an understatement that was.

"Hey, I'm not one to judge," he said. "I currently don't have too many friends... Bosley aside. The other guys I play D&D with at Collector's Gate are pretty cool, but that's really all they are, D&D friends."

"Yeah, if you play D&D you _totally_ don't have room to judge," said Alex with a teasing smirk. "My first and only foray into it was with my cousin and his friends, and they're, like 12. I guess I'd be willing to try again, if the right opportunity comes along. I don't know about those guys at Collector's Gate, though."

"Yeah, no, you definitely shouldn't hang with _those_ guys. They, like, don't know how to act around girls... probably 'cause they've never actually _seen_ one before."

Alex snorted into her latte and Patrick grinned, pleased he could make her laugh. "Honestly," he admitted, "I usually keep to myself... ya know, just spend my time in Escapism. That and wondering if I just might actually see The Red Devil." He laughed and shook his head in an embarrassed manner. "Kinda sad, huh?"

"No, not at all." _After all,_ she thought, _I've got something of a_ Blue Devil _sharing my apartment with me_.

Patrick smiled at Alex over his coffee, flattered by how accepting she was of his quirky interests. But then, something caught his eye. At a table on the other side of the café were two men, one with long hair pulled back into a ponytail and another large guy wearing a tilted down baseball cap. And both of them kept glancing in their direction. Patrick stiffened as he set his drink down on the table and spoke to Alex in a hushed voice.

"Hey, I don't mean to bring down the mood, and I can't be sure because you never told me what he looked like, but I think your stalker might be here. And it looks like he brought a friend."

Alex's face drained of color. "Wh-What?"

"Two guys. The booth in the far corner opposite the doors. They keep looking over here."

Slowly, Alex turned and glanced over her shoulder. She saw the guys Patrick was speaking of. At first, their appearance meant nothing to her. But on closer inspection, she made out a big hulking beast of a guy, and the other with long auburn hair in a ponytail, and the ever so subtle way the light refracted off the crimson line on the one's cheek. With a gasp, Alex spun back around to face Patrick. She grabbed his arm tightly, forcing him to look at her.

"Don't look at them," she hissed.

But, of course, the first thing Patrick did was glance their way. Alex tugged his arm roughly, jerking his attention back to her.

"Whatever you do... Don't. Look. At. Them." Her face had gone as white as a sheet.

"Alex..." said Patrick, starting to get scared. "W-What's going on? Wh-Who are those guys?"

"Listen to me, Patrick..." For a moment, she couldn't seem to speak. Then, she managed to find her voice again. "If you're really my friend, it's important that you do as I say." She picked up her duffle bag and shoved it at his chest. "Take this. Guard it with your life. Do you understand? Preferably, don't open it." Though she knew even as she said this, it only made the idea more prevalent and tempting in his mind. "But guard it with your life."

"Alex... What...?"

Patrick flinched as Alex suddenly let out a laugh as though he'd said something funny. It was like she was trying to make it look to any observers like everything was normal. Patrick's mouth felt as if it had gone bone dry.

Alex leaned forward and placed her lips against his ear. The sensation might have been nice... if it wasn't _this_ situation. Granted, he didn't even know what _this_ situation was. But the words she spoke told him that it was serious.

"Do _not_ follow me," she whispered, and he suddenly felt afraid. Not really for himself, but for Alex. "Do _not_ be a hero. Do _not_ go anywhere near them if you want to live."

_Now_ Patrick felt afraid for himself. "A-Alex... wait..."

"I have your number," she told him. "If you don't hear from me in the next several hours... call the police." Trembling, she stood up. "Remember what I said, Patrick," she said solemnly.

Then, she ran. And sure enough, the two at the table gave chase. The larger one barreled a student over, sending their class papers and latte flying. Patrick, _always_ one to follow orders exactly, immediately leapt to his feet and tried to follow.

"ALEX!"

But Alex had already bolted out the door with the two men in hot pursuit. Sage wore a stoic expression that meant business as he pursued his quarry, whilst Stark had a hungry grin that meant pleasure.

"I love it when they run!"

Alex ran in a blind panic. At least out here there was room to run. But the same was also true for her pursuers. The sky had grown darker, the threat of rain now imminent, and yet it was strangely still. There was no wind. The atmosphere had taken on an eerie green hue. It was like the calm before the storm. Alex ran as fast as she could, knowing she'd have to push herself to her limit, and beyond, if she wished to escape her pursuers. In the back of her head, she heard Patrick saying, _I had asthma really bad as a kid. If I'd run like that when I was little, I woulda died._

She hadn't wanted to admit it at the time, but she had not been so unlike Patrick when she was little. A certain clumsiness from repeated ear infections often made her unbalanced and out of breath, which was why her father often played coordination games with her to practice running without falling, and probably why he let her win so much. As she got older, she eventually grew out of it, but running was never her strong suit, and some of her awkwardness and clumsiness remained - as evidenced by the ladder at work and her trip over the log in the forest. It was the reason she swam. She was much better in the water. But swimming was not going to save her now.

Alex had even more things that put her at a disadvantage. These two that were chasing her down... They weren't simply men. These were androids! Machines! Even if she outran them, out-maneuvered them, or managed to give them the slip, they wouldn't rest until they found her. She was in real danger.

Sage was a hell of a sprinter. His strides were long, graceful, almost as though he were gliding over the ground, barely touching it. Stark was large; slower, but not slow. He was like a man-shaped tank. Even if he wasn't as fast as Sage, nothing would get in his way until he caught his target. Stark called after her as he ran.

"Come back, kid! We just wanna talk! HAHAHA!!"

Alex ran faster than she'd ever run before, not daring to look back. Instinctively, she began to head in the direction of her apartment, but two things stopped her. One, Robotnik knew where she worked and attended school, but he did not know where she lived. It would be foolish to lead them home. And second, although she knew Sonic could most certainly save her, to seek him now would only expose him to danger. Not the danger that Sage and Stark possessed, but one much bigger than them - the notice and mercy of the public and, subsequently, the United States military.

No, she couldn't go to him, for Sonic wouldn't hesitate to rescue her, even if it meant placing himself at risk. Another route, then.

Alex quickly darted off the beaten path, and headed for the edge of campus. There was a pond just at the other side of campus, and beyond, just at the fringe, the woods. Perhaps she could lose them there. As she ran, Alex could hear the larger man calling after her, taunting her. She clenched her teeth and ran harder. She could almost hear the footsteps of the large, meaty one on her heels.

"You can't run forever, girl! But WE CAN!"

He was right. They weren't just hired henchmen. These guys were robots of a sort; androids. And they were not hampered by exhaustion, muscle strain or shortness of breath like her. They would catch her. Alex knew this as sure as she knew the sun would set and rise on a new day. But would she ever see another day?

As she ran, Alex began to sob, her tears threatening to choke and slow her. She closed her eyes tightly. _Come on, come on,_ she thought. _Use Chaos Control! You've done it three times before! You can do it again! Chaos Control!_

"Ch-Cha-" But her words were choked in her throat by her fearful sobs.

_It doesn't matter! You never had to SAY it before. It just happened! Try, Alex! You have to try!_

As she neared the pond, Alex concentrated and began to flicker. Sage's internal Chaos Energy sensor detected an energy spike as the girl momentarily blipped out of existence. Stark's eyes went wide.

"What? What the... Where'd she go?"

"The Chaos Energy inside her spiked! She used Chaos Control! But she's not far! Only a little ways ahead! C'mon!"

When Alex opened her eyes, she was already beyond the trees.

_I did it!_ she thought.

Granted it wasn't a long way, but it was just enough to stay ahead of her pursuers. If she could continue to do even little bursts of Chaos Control, eventually she might manage to give them the slip enough to return to her apartment or the campus police... somewhere!

Alex had gotten a better lead on them, but she could still hear their pursuit as they plunged through the brush. She didn't dare look back. Alex closed her eyes to concentrate, attempting to do Chaos Control again. But then, her foot snagged on a tree root and she tumbled to the ground.

For a moment, the world was a spinning blur, and Alex knew nothing but nausea and the pain in her ankle. Wincing, she flipped onto her back. But in the time that it took her to recover, the two androids had caught up with her.

The large one was grinning at her as he pounded his fist into his open palm, as though readying himself to get physical should the need call for it. Sage, however, approached her calmly with his hands tucked behind his back. He appeared to have no concern that she was a threat. When he spoke, his tone was oddly soothing.

"Miss Parker. I suggest giving up. Our master will wait no longer."

Alex gazed up at him from the ground, sobbing and nursing her ankle. Clenching her teeth, she grabbed a rock and chucked it at him.

"Fuck your master!" she shouted through tears, making this epithet weak at best.

Sage easily dodged the rock with a mere tilt of his head. Behind him, Stark caught it. With a squeeze of his fist, the rock crumbled into dust. So... this is what she was up against. She was doomed.

Sage frowned at Alex. "Crass, Miss Parker."

Stark grinned as he let the bits of crumbled rock fall through his fingers. "She's got a bit of a mouth on her, doesn't she, Sage?"

Sage's gaze settled briefly upon her lips, causing Alex to shiver, though she did not know why this specifically made her react in such a way.

"Yes... She certainly does." Sage's eyes narrowed as he took a step towards her. "I'm afraid I really must insist that we waste no further time."

Alex staggered to her feet, whimpering as she began to back away from them. There was no way out of this. She was helpless. She never should have run this way. She should have gone for Sonic. He was the only one who could fight them. How could she have been so stupid?

_I only wanted to protect him,_ she thought as tears ran down her cheeks.

_But who's going to protect you?_ asked a little voice inside her head.

The whole time, she was slowly backing away. It was all on instinct alone, for she already knew it was too late for her. The slender, handsomer of the androids proved this as he zipped up behind her in a blink of an eye, gripping her arms behind the small of her back. Alex cried out as he spun her around to face him, still keeping her arms pinned behind her.

"H-HELP!" she screamed as she struggled futilely against him. "FIRE! RAPE! MURD-"

But her screams ended abruptly as Sage locked his gaze on hers, his crimson eyes giving off a subliminal pulse. Slowly, he lifted his fingers to her temple and gently trailed them down the side of her face. A soothing, tingling sensation overcame her, one that was gradually making her lose consciousness.

"Rest now, Dear."

The compulsion to sleep was so strong that Alex could not resist its siren's call. Her eyes began to flutter. "Fuuuuck..." She collapsed in his arms.

Stark crossed his arms and frowned. "We sat through that whole swimming thing just to go for a jog? How dull. I was hoping I'd get to smash a few things."

Sage didn't even look at his partner as he replied. "I'm sure you'll get your chance. Honestly, I'm pretty sure I could've handled this on my own."

Keeping Alex propped in the cook of his arm, Sage held his opposite hand in front of him, palm-side up. A small nodule opened in his palm and a holographic image of their master's head rose up.

"Well? Do you have the girl?"

Sage nodded. "Target acquired, Master."

Robotnik grinned wickedly. "Ooh... Excellent. No trouble then?"

Stark leaned in towards the image. "Not a bit! It was too easy!"

Robotnik nodded. "Very good. Meet me at the car, then. Hurry."

"Yes, Master," they replied simultaneously.

The image of Robotnik faded out and Sage looked down at the girl in his arms and smiled the slightest of smiles. "You're proving quite interesting, Miss Parker."

He rolled up the sleeve of his hoodie, revealing a metallic device latched to his forearm. Locked into it was a yellow gemstone glowing brightly. Stark placed his hand on Sage's shoulder as Sage pumped his arm into the air.

"Chaos Control!"

In a bright flash of yellow light, the androids and their captive disappeared.


	13. Chapter 13

Patrick couldn't keep up.

He tried taking off after the two strange men who were chasing Alex, but between them knocking people over in the cafe and causing a general ruckus, Patrick was held up. By the time he escaped the cafe, they were all already so far ahead. Patrick was alarmed to discover that Alex was running into the woods.

_The Woods?_ _Why would she run somewhere_ less _populated?_ _What the hell is going on here?_

They were so far ahead that Patrick never saw Alex's little disappearing act. Not with the hulking goon blocking his view of her. By the time he got to the edge of the woods, he was breathing so heavily that his lungs were burning. Perhaps even on the brink of triggering an old attack.

_You can't stop! Alex is in danger! You gotta go help her!_

Leaning against a tree and panting hard, Patrick spoke out loud to his own conscience.

"I... I should... be... calling the police!"

But then he heard a voice screaming for help. "FIRE! RAPE! MURD—" only to be quickly smothered.

Patrick's eyes widened. "Alex..."

He took as deep a breath as he could muster and shot off through the woods once more.

"ALEX!"

As he got deeper and deeper into the woods, he saw a bright yellow flash, which made him skid to a stop.

"W-What the hell? ALEX!!!"

After a brief hesitation, he ran in the direction he'd seen the flash, but there was no one in sight.

"AL-ALEX! WH-WHERE... WHERE ARE YOU!?"

Something lunged down at him from the trees and knocked him onto his back. His glasses toppled off of his face, blurring his vision.

"NGH! Wha...? Wh-Who's there?"

When Patrick turned his head to see who hit him, all he could see was a red figure tromping towards him. Patrick's eyes went wide.

"Oh my God... Oh shit! THE RED DEVIL! It's real! It's fucking real!!"

The red figure stopped. "Devil? Who are you calling a devil?"

He hadn't been expecting to encounter the Red Devil. And he _certainly_ hadn't been expecting it to... talk?! Patrick scrambled around the ground until his hand closed around his glasses. Clumsily, shakily, he placed them back on his face and let out a scream that, very unfortunately, sounded much higher pitched than he would have liked.

"N-No," he said, slowly scooting backwards on his bottom, clutching at Alex's duffle bag and shaking his head. "No way... You're... You're not... You can't be real!"

The Red Devil, Patrick had been willing to believe. But this? Not so much.

"You're just a ch-character from a v-video game! No... No, you can't be here!"

Was he dreaming? What was in that coffee?

Standing before him with prickly red fur, long flowing dreadlocks, and two sharp spiky protrusions on the back of a pair of large, boxing-glove like hands and glaring at him with a pair of purple eyes was none other than Knuckles the Echidna, the guardian of the Master Emerald from the very series that Patrick had long since abandoned for being 'lame.' The creature was standing before him, looking rather stern and more than a tad disgruntled.

"I don't know what that means, nor do I care. What I _do_ care about is what's in that bag. I wasn't fast enough to get the others... but I can at least get the one _you_ have."

Patrick glanced down at Alex's duffle bag, then returned his perplexed gaze to the anthropomorphic bipedal echidna. In his shock, he couldn't think, couldn't quite fathom what was happening. All he could recall was what Alex had said was in her bag.

"You want... a hair dryer?"

Knuckles clenched his teeth. This human was proving to be frustrating. He didn't want to have to hurt him. But if push came to shove...

"You're involving yourself in something that doesn't concern you. Your friend seemed to know what was going on, and she got taken for it."

"A-Alex? You mean... Those guys... they... Oh man! Please! You've got to tell me what happened to her! Is she all right?"

But Knuckles ignored him. "You should just give me that bag and you can forget you ever even saw me. If you know what's good for you, you'll stay out of the way." Knuckles motioned one of his large fists toward Patrick. "Now give me the Chaos Emerald!"

Patrick's brow furrowed and his jaw dropped even lower. At the moment, he was doing a very good impression of a brainless bovine.

"A wh-what now? Y-You think I have a... a Chaos Emerald?" His eyes grew wide. "Holy shit! Those are real?!" Then, muttering to himself, "Well, they'd have to be, wouldn't they? I mean, if _Knuckles_ is real..."

Knuckles was growing impatient. He didn't have any interest in this human. He just wanted the emerald. His large fists clenched tighter, and the spikes on the backs of his hands seem to protrude just a bit more.

"Enough! Give me the Chaos Emerald or I'll have to take it from you! I'm not going to say it again! I know you have it. I can feel it there." Knuckles' eyes narrowed as he began to consider this situation. "Though... Why would she give but _one_ emerald to you?" he muttered to himself. "I felt Chaos Energy _on_ her, as well. Why wouldn't she give you both emeralds? That doesn't make any sense."

Knuckles shook his head as though that didn't matter at this very moment, and turned his purple glare on Patrick once more. "Hand it over, human!"

"W-Wait!" said Patrick. "You've gotta be mistaken! I-I don't have a Chaos Emerald! Alex only gave me her duffle bag and told me to..." He trailed off, his eyes widening in realization. "... to guard it with my life."

"Exactly. Now hand it over."

"L-Look, man, I'm on your side, all right? Like, you were my favorite character to play, punching through walls and climbing and stuff. But, I mean, Alex... She told me to keep her bag safe. And even if there _is_ a Chaos Emerald in there... Man, we can't go through her stuff! That would be an invasion of privacy! And she's a... a... girl. Her, like, clothes are in there, man. And..." Patrick blinked and shook his head. "Am I seriously having a conversation with a fictional character right now?"

None of the boy's prattling mattered to Knuckles. He just wanted what was in the bag. However, it seemed that this human was going to take some more convincing. Knuckles turned away and went back to the tree from which he'd lunged at Patrick. Quickly, he climbed it and grabbed a tan bag made from roughly stitched-together canvas, and floated back down to the ground.

"Your friend apparently wishes you to be guardian of the contents of her bag. But I must know..." He reached inside his bag and pulled out a glowing purple gemstone. "Did she show you something like this?" The closer Knuckles brought it to Alex's bag, the brighter the purple stone began to glow.

Patrick shook his head, mesmerized by the sight of a real-life Chaos Emerald. "N-No. Why would she? Chaos Emeralds aren't... Well, they're not _supposed_ to be real. I don't even know why she'd have one on her..." He trailed off as Alex's duffle bag started to glow. Patrick's eyes widened. "W-Wait... So there really _is_ a Chaos Emerald in there?"

Slowly, he unzipped Alex's bag, started to reach in, then hesitated. "Aw man... This is _so_ wrong. Like, a huge invasion of privacy! And I only just started to get to know her! What would she think if she knew I went rummaging around in her..." But he trailed off at the look on Knuckles' face. "A-All right, all right!"

Taking a deep breath, Patrick closed his eyes and plunged his hand into the bag. "AH!" He withdrew his hand, his cheeks bright red.

"What's wrong? Is it booby trapped?"

"I-I think I t-touched her b-bra."

Knuckles averted his gaze, a slight blush on his cheeks. "F-Forget that!" he said through clenched teeth. "Just man up and reach in there!"

Patrick closed his eyes, held his breath, and sunk his hand down into the bag once more, doing his best to ignore what felt suspiciously like panties... small panties... lacy panties...

_Oh God help me..._

Finally, Patrick's hand closed over something hard. Hesitantly, he opened his eyes as he withdrew a silver, shimmering gemstone.

"Wow..." he breathed. "She really _did_ have a Chaos Emerald on her. But why?"

There was an expression on Knuckles' face that seemed to say _'I knew it!'_ as he reached for the emerald, but Patrick quickly drew his hand back.

"Hey!" Knuckles' hand curled into a big meaty fist which looked like it could pulverize a solid wall.

"W-Wait a sec! No, look, I'm gonna give it to you, honest! So please don't hit me!" Patrick begged, cringing away. "It's just... before I give it to you, I need to know some things. We'll call it a trade-off. I need to know what the hell is going on, how it is you're real, and what happened to Alex. _Especially_ what happened to Alex. I deserve to know, all right, man?"

To Patrick's embarrassment, this last part came out as more of a nervous squeak, but he did his best to make up for it by maintaining eye contact with Knuckles and wearing a serious expression.

"Please..." he said quietly. "Please. She's my friend."

Knuckles' expression was a mix of contemplative and annoyed, but seeing the desperate look in Patrick's eyes, he lowered his fist. "Fine. If you really must know, those men who took your friend were no men. They were machines. They're a pair of dangerous androids created by a villain named Robotnik."

Patrick's jaw dropped. _Androids??? Those were androids?!_ "W-Wait... You mean... You mean Alex was kidnapped by... by Dr. Robotnik?" Patrick's face went pale. He felt like he was going to be sick. "B-But... but what would Eggman want with Alex?"

Knuckles raised a brow as Patrick referred to Robotnik as 'Eggman.' That was Sonic's nickname for the evil doctor. How would this human know that nickname? Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that Sonic seemed to be a creature of legend on this world. Knuckles had been around these parts long enough to determine that tales regarding himself and his acquaintances had made their way to this world and were shared through a plethora of mediums. But none of that concerned him. He didn't care what people of this world thought of those of his world. He only cared about finding the emeralds and returning home.

"I believe they must've been after that Chaos Emerald. Though I could sense more traces of Chaos Energy when I was tracking them. The androids had one, and your friend had at least one other. Maybe more. Why she didn't give you the others she was carrying is beyond me. But at least she kept this one out of Robotnik's hands."

"You're right," said Patrick musingly. "That doesn't make sense. And Alex is totally smart, so if she had any more on her, she likely would've kept them away from him as well. Plus, I mean, she was wearing a swimsuit and track pants. I really don't think she could've had another one on her. I don't know why you would've sensed one. Maybe she was, like, exposed to this one for a while and it was lingering or something." Patrick sighed and shook his head. "I don't know. I can't pretend to know anything about this."

"Maybe she kept one to throw them off the scent of this one. That's a clever idea, but now Robotnik still has another emerald in his hands. And I intend to keep the one you have away from him!" Knuckles held his hand out expectantly, waiting for Patrick to hand the white emerald over to him.

Patrick hesitated a moment. Then, having decided he'd gotten the most important information out of Knuckles, he reached out to hand the echidna the emerald as promised, but then, suddenly, drew his hand back.

"Wait!" he said, his eyes narrowing. "If you knew they were after her, why didn't you help her?!" Suddenly, Patrick looked scandalized. "You came after the one _I_ had when you _should_ have rescued her! I thought you were a good guy!" Patrick rose shakily to his feet, looking incensed and determined. "Okay, dude. New bargain. You rescue Alex from Robotnik and _then_ I'll give you the Chaos Emerald."

"What? I have no business in the affairs of humans! I just want the Chaos Emeralds so I can return home! Angel Island has been without its guardian for too long already." Glaring at Patrick, Knuckles took another step towards him. "You said you'd give me the emerald after I told you what you wanted to know. I did that! Now give it to me!"

"Yeah?! Well, I want my friend back!" Patrick found himself shouting at the hotheaded echidna, perhaps against his better judgment. To his immense embarrassment, there were tears in his eyes. He quickly wiped at them, hoping Knuckles hadn't noticed.

"I may have only just met her, but I've had a crush on this girl since the day I first laid eyes on her! She's cute and sweet and smart, and, like, totally cool! Like, the coolest girl I've ever met! And I can't believe some guy who's supposed to be a hero, who's saved the world from Robotnik alongside Sonic countless times could be so damn selfish that he wouldn't help an innocent girl! You'd really just let Robotnik keep her and do God knows what with her?"

Knuckles' eyes held onto Patrick as the boy got riled up quite fast. He seemed like a young man who didn't get upset overly often... but when he did, it was something to behold. But he also seemed like he didn't quite know how to handle himself when he was upset.

Patrick shook his head, sending unmanly tears sliding down his cheeks. "I can't pretend to know how any of this happened or how it's possible that a video game character has suddenly sprung to life, but I can easily guess how you got here. Your damn villain and the Chaos Emeralds showed up and got an innocent girl into trouble! Odds are, if it wasn't for you and these stupid rocks..." In his frustration, Patrick pitched the emerald across the clearing, no longer caring whether Knuckles got it and ran off. "She wouldn't _be_ in this mess! But maybe I'm asking the wrong person. Maybe I should be looking for _Sonic_. If _you're_ here, he's gotta be here, too, somewhere. Right? I know _he'd_ rescue Alex. So thanks for nothing, Knuckles."

With that, he slung Alex's duffle bag over his shoulder and stalked off through the woods back towards campus, wiping the unsightly tears from his cheeks.

_Dammit,_ he thought. _Dammit, dammit, dammit..._ He determined that finding Sonic was the only way to help Alex, but had not a clue as to how to accomplish that.

It wasn't just pity that made Knuckles do what he did next. It was also the boy's belief that Sonic would do something that _he_ wouldn't. As Patrick stalked off, wiping tears from his eyes, he heard Knuckles' voice once more.

"Hey!"

When Patrick turned to look, Knuckles was holding the white emerald in his hand.

"Your friend would be very upset with you if you failed in the guardianship she entrusted you with." He tossed the white emerald back to Patrick, who caught it, looking dumbfounded. "I'll see what I can do to find her. Maybe find where Robotnik is hiding himself. If I can get her out, _then_ I'll take that emerald from you. But until then... You're the guardian of the White Emerald. That is _not_ a task to be simply thrown aside at the first sign of trouble."

Patrick's legs wobbled and he fell to his knees in relief. He swallowed and nodded. "Th-Thank you," he said sincerely. "I'll guard it with my life."

Knuckles gave Patrick a nod. He didn't want to admit it out loud, but if Robotnik's androids found the white emerald to be in this boy's possession, his life may very well be the only thing he could give to try to protect it. And the boy hardly seemed tough.

Patrick took a deep breath, composed himself, and started afresh. "My name's Patrick Miller. It's nice to meet you. And thank you. Really. I-I owe you one. And Alex..." He smiled fondly, and it was definitely the smile of a boy who was positively smitten. "She'll thank you, too. She's, like a huge Sonic dork. So I just know if you rescue her, she'll not only be grateful, but she'll probably squee and hug you. Heh, maybe even kiss you. She's definitely the type."

Knuckles crossed his arms over his chest and averted his gaze, his cheeks flushing just slightly. "That really won't be necessary. She just doesn't deserve to be caught up in Robotnik's scheme."

Patrick tried not to chuckle at Knuckles' reaction to what he said Alex might do as a thank-you. He was pretty convinced that if Knuckles met Alex properly, he wouldn't be so tough. Alex had a way about her.

"You won't regret it," he said. "And I won't let you, or her, down."

Knuckles slung his stitched canvass bag over his shoulder. "It is good to meet a human who seems just as passionate about protecting something... or, in your case, _someone_... as I am. We are well met, Patrick Miller."

"Well," said Patrick, bashfully rubbing the back of his neck. "We're not _all_ bad."

"Duly noted," said Knuckles. Then, his eyes narrowed as though something occurred to him. "Though, why were you calling me... _The Red Devil?_ Is that how people of this world portray me in their Sonic Fantasy Tales?"

"Oh! Uh, no. Not at all. You started out as, like, a sort of 'friendly nemesis' to Sonic and, eventually, an ally. You're the tough-guy loner type..." Patrick smirked. "Which I can see was pretty on the nose. Anyway, sorry about calling you The Red Devil. Uh, see, what that's about is..."

Patrick quickly explained about the sightings reported on the nightly news and cryptozoology internet forums, further explaining cryptozoology to Knuckles.

"Basically, it's like unexplained, uh, creatures, for lack of a better word. Sometimes monsters, sometimes just unidentified animals. On Earth we're a human-dominant planet. Animals here aren't like you and Sonic. They're more like... Well, that squirrel over there."

A bushy gray squirrel was cracking a nut atop a nearby tree trunk. It glanced up at Knuckles and dropped its nut with a comical sort of expression. Then, tail bristling, it darted fearfully up a tree.

Knuckles replied with a "Hmph."

"So, anything that's not human and out of the ordinary is, well, a cryptid. But seriously, you should be more careful. If anyone sees you for what – or who – you really are, it could cause quite a stir, and then you'll have more than just Robotnik to contend with, if you catch my drift."

But Knuckles simply brushed off his concern. "It won't be a problem. If I am like one of these 'cryptid' things you mentioned, then no one will get any real proof that I even exist."

Knuckles turned away and went to a nearby spot where he lowered to the ground. Closing his eyes, he placed his hand over the grass and concentrated.

"Chaos energy... This was where they activated Chaos Control. I should be able to track it."

Patrick swallowed nervously. He really hoped Knuckles could contend with Robotnik and his androids, for Alex's sake, and... because he really liked the guy. Hopefully Knuckles wouldn't get into too much trouble on their account.

"You get on out of here, Patrick Miller. Get that Chaos Emerald somewhere safe. I'll find you when all is said and done."

Patrick looked surprised. "You will? But, uh, how?" Then, it dawned on him. "Oh! Right... You can feel Chaos energy. You'll find me by tracking the Chaos Emerald." Taking a deep breath, Patrick rose to his feet and nodded. "Thanks, Knuckles. You're a good guy. I'm sorry for, ya know, what I said earlier. I'm glad we met, and I'll be happy to consider you my friend, if that isn't too bold to say."

Knuckles raised his hand, keeping his gaze averted. "Yeah... Okay." He seemed like the sort of guy that didn't entirely seek out friendships, and when it was presented to him, he didn't readily accept it, at least not out loud. Patrick grinned. It was just so... Knuckles.

"Also, you can just call me Patrick," he said. Then, shouldering Alex's duffle bag, he gave Knuckles a resolute nod. "See you when you get back, Knux. And good luck."

Knuckles gave Patrick a wordless nod. Then, with his own bag hoisted over his shoulder, the echidna took his leave, first by jumping onto a tree, kicking off, and then leaping onto another one and kicking off into the air.

Patrick ran into the clearing to gaze up through the opening in the trees, watching Knuckles as he glided off over the treetops.

"Cool," he said with a grin. Then, holding tightly to Alex's duffle bag, he made the long trek home, feeling anxious, but a little more confident than before.


	14. Chapter 14

The first thing Alex was aware of when she slowly began to regain consciousness was the sensation of a slow, steady, rolling movement that she associated with riding in the backseat of a car. The second was that her hair and bathing suit were no longer damp, suggesting a passage of at least 20 minutes or more.

As the vehicle rolled over an imperfection in the road, she felt herself jostled, and that's when she became aware of a presence on either side of her. She felt the distinct sensation of a shoulder pressing against her cheek. Who was that? Liam? Was Aunt Dena taking them somewhere? And why did she have no memory of this?

Alex wanted to open her eyes, but she was feeling so very sleepy. Almost _too_ comfortable. She didn't want to wake up. Her muddled mind refused, content to drift away in the fuzzy warmth of oblivion. But then, there was a voice; one that was vaguely familiar and sent a chill down her spine.

"I will say this... Technology has made impressive leaps and bounds in almost 40 years, but it's what they _do_ with said technology... It's all so banal."

Alex didn't know what it was about that voice, why it sounded familiar – though she couldn't quite place it – nor why it caused such a negative physical reaction within her. With a groan, Alex began to stir.

"Well, looks like she's finally coming to. At last."

Alex slowly awakened to find herself in the back seat of what appeared to be a large luxury SUV-type vehicle. She was positioned between two bodies. One large and bulky, and one tall and lean.

Sage and Stark!

Gone were their casual attires, leaving behind the body suits they'd worn at Roman's place. And seated across from her in the dark attire he'd worn the day he came to her place of work was none other than Robotnik, who was swiping his finger across the screen of an Android phone. Alex had just enough presence of mind to be frightened, but confusion and a lingering tiredness reigned supreme. Her body felt like it was encased in concrete. She couldn't move. It was a struggle even to talk.

Sage glanced down at the girl, whose head had been pressing against his shoulder for most of the ride. Robotnik glared impatiently at her.

"Sage..." he said.

"Yes Master." Anticipating the doctor's whims, Sage brought his hand to Alex's forehead. A small energy pulse rippled through her body, one that jolted her fully awake as though by an alarm clock. With a cry, Alex instinctively leapt to her feet only to whack her head against the ceiling of the car.

"Agh!" She fell back down into her seat, wincing and placing her hands over her head. Through watering eyes, she gazed once more at the man seated across from her. "N-No..." she whispered hoarsely.

Robotnik tossed the phone aside, apparently having grown bored with it. "So," he said. "I did my best to do this in a peaceful manner. And instead... you decided it best to insult me by subjecting me to a poorly animated cartoon with a none-too-subtle message that you apparently wished me to find. Do you think it wise to raise my ire, Miss Parker?"

Alex could just barely hear him over the pounding of her heart. Her wide eyes were trapped by those dark lenses. She found it incredibly unsettling that she couldn't actually look him in the eyes. Those dark lenses almost seemed to hold a dangerous mystery. She could never quite tell what he was thinking.

"N-No," she mumbled, lowering her gaze. "I was just trying to be helpful. It's not like you would've listened to me if I'd tried to tell you anything."

She tried her best to speak calmly and not do or say anything rash. If he wanted to talk, then she'd talk with him. But in reality, she was subtly taking in her surroundings, trying to get a good grasp on her environment and see if she could spot any flaws or weak points in her confinement that she might be able to use to her advantage. The best she could tell, she was in a car. The notorious Lincoln MKT sedan, from the looks of it. That made a quick getaway difficult, and not only that, Sage and Stark were on either side of her. But who was driving the car?

Alex looked past Robotnik's shoulder towards the apparent driver of the car. The hands on the steering wheel weren't human. They were metallic. And the head that was wearing a hat and sunglasses was ill-defined. It didn't even have a mouth. An automaton, completely unlike Sage and Stark, but more like what one might classically consider to be a robot. The sight of it made her shiver. She wasn't sure how she felt about putting her life in the hands of such a thing. Self-driving cars were one thing. Anything but that creepy robot that only bore the most minimal semblance of a human.

Robotnik girt his teeth. His hands gripped the edge of the seat hard enough that the leather squealed in protest. Alex whimpered as she cowered in her seat, trying to put herself as far from him as possible.

"Helpful? Helpful how? By telling me I'm untrustworthy and that you know that I'm just trying to 'dupe' you? I really don't see how that was being helpful." He leaned back in his seat, crossing one leg languidly over the other. "However," he said more calmly, "you _have_ given me the opportunity to see just what became of my DreamCasts. Looks like those people at Sega were the prime recipients of my transmissions. Though, they seem to have interpreted it in their _own_ way. I suppose I just wasn't the hero they were looking for."

The comment about his 'DreamCasts' made little sense to Alex, and while under other circumstances she might have been curious, right now she could focus on little but her own panic over her predicament.

"W-What are you doing to do to me?" she asked tremulously, though she wasn't so sure she wanted the answer.

Robotnik smirked, savoring her fear. "I was telling the truth about one thing, Miss Parker. I want the power that's inside of you. But as for how to get it, that's the tricky part. It's unfortunate that you had to be involved with this. Truthfully, I have no interest in you, personally. But because of that power inside you... I'm afraid I'm going to have to see just how to get it to come _out_."

Before Alex could stop herself, she blurted out two more questions, ones she was afraid she already knew the answer to, but had to know regardless. "A-Are you going to hurt me? Are you going to let me go afterwards?"

Robotnik's smile slowly fell. His hands rose up and formed an arch, his fingertips tapping together in a contemplative moment of silence. "Well, you see, this is where it gets complicated."

Alex already didn't like that sound of that.

"I don't know if I have an answer for that at this time. While I'd love to say 'Sure, I can just siphon the power out of you and then let you go home,' I simply don't believe that's going to be possible. I want to find out just how much Chaos Energy you're generating, Miss Parker. And when we discover that, I'm going to be enlisting you as the first volunteer of my brand-new experiment. I have a wonderful project that I'm working on. And it requires quite a bit of power that I'm afraid my base, as it currently stands, isn't fit to handle. I'm afraid _you_ are going to have to be that energy source."

Alex's face paled. Her eyes welled with tears. Not wishing for all the world to cry in front of him, she lowered her head. She clenched her hands into fists on her thighs to keep from trembling. Tears rolled down her cheeks, plipping onto the back of her hands. And still she kept silent, trying to cling to whatever last shred of dignity was left to her.

Through watery eyes, her tear-filled gaze found the gold medal pinned to her jacket and her mind drifted to the events of earlier that day. The swim meet, the diving competition. She'd won gold. She'd been so happy, so excited, so eager to call her mother and to hurry home and tell Sonic. And Patrick Miller... He'd come to her swim meet to cheer her on and congratulate her. They'd gone to get coffee. At 18, it was a little late in life, but it was her first date with a cute boy – or at least, it was going to be.

When she thought about how perfectly the day had started out and juxtaposed it to what was happening to her now, it only made her cry harder. And soon, despite fighting it with every ounce of strength she possessed, she couldn't help but succumb to sobs of fear and despair. And then, she began to flicker.

Her captors watched in awe as her Chaos Energy output increased beyond her ability or realization. Her hair began to lift as though from static electricity and the car radio blipped on by itself, running uncontrollably through a series of stations.

Sage's eyes widened. "Master... Her energy..." He could sense it. This wasn't just her usual Chaos Control. Something more was happening here. And it needed to stop before it was too late.

For a moment, Robotnik's expression was one of panic. Then, looking to Sage, he commanded, "Put her down!"

Alex was hardly aware of the problems she was causing. If she had any inkling, she might have made more of an attempt to tap into her power in order to escape. But she was so distraught, she could think of little else. But at Robotnik's shout, her head snapped up and she gazed wide-eyed at him, clearly misinterpreting his meaning.

Sage placed his hand over her forehead and she began to thrash, attempting to fight him off. But at the sound of his words, "Ease... Ease..." that soothing, tingling sensation returned, filling her body and her mind. The light seemed to leave her eyes, leaving in its place a rather dazed look.

The radio stopped its shuffling, Alex's hair settled, and that feeling of chaos energy instantly dissipated. Alex's body went limp, slumping against Sage, not quite unconscious, but dazed, almost punch drunk. All around her seemed to get washed out, and in its place came fantasies and vague memories of time long past.

The next half hour of the ride consisted mainly of incoherent mutterings from Alex, occasional fits of giggles, and fragments of a conversation she seemed to be holding with someone who wasn't there, or one she must have once held with someone a long time ago.

"The birthday episode," she said with a giggle. "Tiger went over the moon." Raucous laughter followed that one.

Sometimes there were long periods of silence, only for Alex to break out into song. "Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket, save it for a raaaiiiny daaaay..."

Alex murmured and mumbled and spoke aloud to no one, and recalled, and laughed; such a plethora of disjointed verbalities. And every time she burst into something new, Robotnik would jump, startled each and every time.

It wasn't exactly clear what daydreams were going on in Alex's mind, but at one point she seemed to be holding a conversation with a non-existent father figure. Her infantile manner of speech suggested she was recalling memories from long ago.

"I don't want to take a bath, Daddy," she said in the tonal protestations of a little girl.

Then, she leaned back in her seat, eyes closed with a cheerful smile on her face as she rocked from side to side singing, "I don't mind you coming here, and wasting all my time, time. 'Cause when you're standing oh so near, I kinda lose my mind... I guess you're just what I needed. I needed someone to feed. I guess you're just what I needed. I needed someone to bleed..."

Stark covered his ears and clenched his teeth. "When is she gonna stop? Let me shut her up, Master!"

Robotnik was rubbing his head as though staving off a migraine. "You will not! I don't want her injured. For all we know that could trigger another event within her."

Sage had been staring ahead silently, unrattled by Alex's endless blathering which had so irritated his counterpart. But then, this song... Although he had no recollection of ever having heard it before, this song picked at him somehow. As Alex continued to sing, he softly murmured the lyrics along with her.

"I don't mind you comin' here... And wastin' all my time, time. 'Cause when you're standin' oh so near... I kinda lose my mind, yeah. It's not the perfume that you wear. It's not the ribbons in your hair. I don't mind you comin' here... And wastin' all my time. I guess you're just what I needed..."

Robotnik's brow twitched. "SAGE!"

Sage's eyes went wide as though he'd been caught in a scandalous act as he shot to attention.

"Master!"

Robotnik looked angry, though he didn't address why. "Bring her out of it! We're about at the lake front!"

Sage brought his hand to Alex's forehead once more. Then, the jolt. Alex came to with a gasp. Groaning, she put her face in her hands.

"Ngh... Wh-What did you do to me? M-My head hurts..."

Sage remained silent as he contemplated exactly why it was that he'd been lost in the song that Alex was singing. Why had that song struck him so? How was it that he seemed to know the lyrics?

Alex lifted her face from her hands, looking rather flushed. She gazed around and her expression turned to one of despair once more as she remembered that her predicament hadn't just been some awful dream after all. Strangely composed, despite still feeling quite frightened, Alex glanced out the window.

"I know where we are," she murmured. "We're in North Lake."

"That's right," said Robotnik, almost conversationally, though there was a wicked gleam in his eyes. "Before long, we'll be arriving at our destination. And not a moment too soon, either."

It was then Alex realized that, with this knowledge, she could text the general location to Patrick and have him relay it to the police! Of course, she couldn't – and nor would she – say anything about _who_ had kidnapped her. He'd think she'd lost her mind. But she could at least say that she'd been kidnapped and give him her general location.

Alex's hand moved to her hip, only to falter. _No... No, no, no. Oh no!_

Her phone wasn't on her person, for she was still in her bathing suit and jacket. It was in her duffle bag, which she'd left with Patrick! Alex slumped forward and buried her face in her hands once more.

_Oh, why the hell didn't I just_ tell _Sonic that Robotnik was stalking me?! Even if he realizes I'm missing and comes looking, he has no way of finding me! No one does!_

The car pulled up to a secluded beach on the lake. It was a section that had been closed off to the public due to erosion; perfect for coming and going without being spotted by the general public. Robotnik glanced over his shoulder at the mechanical driver.

"Driver Mecha, take off!"

A pair of digital red glowing pupils illuminated on the front of the sunglasses that the robot wore on its face and a stiff, mechanical voice replied, "Yes, sir. Flight mode, initiated."

The car began to rumble as Alex heard a whole different kind of engine activate. When she looked out the window, she saw them rising up from the ground as the shell of the car changed shape to make it more aerodynamic, though the inside remained the same.

With a gasp, Alex leapt from her seat and dropped to her knees in front of the window. "W-We're flying? Holy shit! We're flying!"

"Oh! Actually impressed with one of my creations, are you?" asked Robotnik with a self-satisfied smirk. "That's a change of pace."

This was amazing! Earth didn't have _anything_ like this. No flying cars. Not a one.

_There's no way_ someone _isn't going to notice a flying car soaring over the lake,_ she thought. _Someone's gonna take a pic or a video and put it online and police are going to investigate. Maybe even the military! I'll be rescued after all! It's only a matter of time!_

Alex turned her gaze to Robotnik. She had a big smile that might have been appealing were it not for the cheeky implication of her next words. "Someone," she said, her grin growing ever wider, "...is going to see us."

For a moment, Robotnik simply stared at her. And for the briefest of moments, Alex thought she had him caught. She was certain he'd made a mistake. After all, in nearly every iteration of the character, Robotnik was the sort of genius who often missed the forest for the trees.

But then, he began to laugh. "Oh... Oh no! I _never_ would have planned for this!" he mocked, clapping the heel of his hand to his forehead. "Why didn't it occur to me that someone might see a flying car and get suspicious?" He rolled his eyes and said dryly, "Please, girl. You think I didn't plan for that possibility? This vehicle is equipped with full coverage holographic image reflectors. In other words... we've got a cloaking device, Miss Parker."

"A... cloaking device?"

Alex's confidence went out like a candle. Her fuse burnt out and she slumped, dismayed, upon the seat next to him and buried her face in her hands. So, this was it. Her last chance, gone. What chance did she stand against Robotnik, anyway? How foolish she had been!

Robotnik leaned back in his seat, an arrogant smile on his face. "You may as well get comfortable and enjoy the ride, Miss Parker." He picked up the Android phone he'd been toying with earlier and resumed swiping his finger across the screen, muttering something about 'a waste of technology.'

Alex lowered her hands and leaned back against the headrest. She closed her eyes, but she couldn't keep the tears from running down her cheeks.

_There has to be a way,_ she thought. _There's always hope. What would Sonic do? Or Tails, in this situation? I can't run or fly away. I can't spin dash my way out of this. But surely there's something..._

Alex turned her head to the side, her gaze on the water below them as they soared over the lake. "I don't feel good," she murmured. "It's hot. Can we, like, open some windows, please?"

"What are you babbling about?" said Robotnik, not looking up from his phone.

"Please," she begged. "I really don't feel well."

He glanced up from his phone. Nothing in her voice betrayed anything but a general despair and unwellness. And on inspection, she _did_ look rather flushed. Perhaps they'd been too rough with her. It wouldn't serve him for her to get ill.

With a sigh, he glanced over his shoulder at the driver. "Driver Mecha, open the sunroof."

"Yes, sir."

A sunroof opened above them, letting in the cool lake breeze.

"There. Now quit your complaining."

Alex bristled. That comment was hardly called for. Especially since _he_ was the one kidnapping _her_. Did she not have the right to complain? About several things, in fact?

"Great, thanks," she said dryly as she continued to gaze out the window. But gradually, her gaze moved to Stark, who sat across from her. She narrowed her eyes at him. "What? Why are you looking at me?" she asked.

His big meaty arms were crossed over his chest as he glared at her. "I'm looking at you to make sure you don't try anything sneaky. You already were gonna do your little disappearing act earlier. It's not gonna happen again."

Alex rolled her eyes. "Yeah, whatever." But she continued to scrutinize him. "So... you're really strong, right? How much would you say you can bench?"

Robotnik briefly glanced up from his phone. What sort of insipid question was that? What interest did the girl have in Stark? But then he decided he didn't entirely care and went back to playing with his phone.

Stark, however, seemed more than happy to answer her question as an arrogant grin crossed his face. He replied with one simple answer.

"Tons!"

Alex snorted at his response. "Right. _Real_ specific. Okay, meathead, let's try it this way. Could you, like, smash a boulder?"

"Definitely! That's easy!"

"What about uproot a tree? And I mean, like, a fully-grown tree, like right out of the ground."

"I did a palm tree once! Chucked that sucker like a spear, too!"

"Okay, so, like, you could probably lift a car, huh? A small car or a big car? Like a truck?"

Stark grinned wider. "Maybe I oughta show you what I can do sometime. Wait until you see me in action!" If she didn't know any better, Alex would swear that Stark was flexing his muscles, or whatever mechanisms in his body behaved like muscles.

Robotnik continued to play with his phone, simply grunting at how inane all of this was. Neither he nor Sage were paying much attention to this peculiar interaction, having deemed it beneath their interest.

"All right," said Alex, nodding in understanding. "So you're definitely strong, but what about... _that thing_ over there?!"

She thrust her arm towards the opposite window so suddenly that both Sage and Stark instinctively turned their heads in that direction. Stark leaned across Sage to look out his side of the vehicle.

"Huh? What? What are you pointing at?"

"What are you doing!?" demanded Sage as he was pushed towards his window. "Stay on _your_ side!"

It was then Alex made her move. Faster than they could have anticipated, she leapt up onto the seat and launched herself through the sunroof. Robotnik caught sight of her at the last second.

"What the...? HEY! What in the _hell_ do you think you're doing!?"

But what Alex had thought to be a foolproof plan proved to be more dangerous than she could have anticipated. As far as she could tell, she was on the roof of the car, but only by feel alone. With the cloaking device, it appeared as though she was just hovering on thin air. Alex could not have anticipated just how unsettling this might be. With a cry, she felt herself sliding down what she presumed was the rear window and onto the trunk.

"Oof!"

Below her was nothing but air. And the lake way, way down below. With a strangled cry, Alex tried to find purchase on a part of the car – something, _anything_ – but she could find nothing to sink her hands into. Balance alone kept her seated on the trunk. The wind whipped at her hair, and the dark clouds which had been looming all day finally opened up, pelting her face with cold, hard raindrops.

Alex was paralyzed in fear as she clung to nothing, relying only on her core muscles to keep her balanced. It had been her intention to climb out the window and leap into the lake below, but she hadn't considered what it would look like with a cloaking device, nor how high they truly were. This was way higher than the three-meter diving board. Frozen as she was, it wasn't until she heard a voice shouting at her, that she glanced over her shoulder.

"Are you mad, girl!?"

Robotnik had managed to wedge himself partway out the sun roof. The sight was really trippy. With the cloaking device, Robotnik simply looked like a head and half a torso floating in midair.

"Do you have a damned death-wish?" he shouted. "Get back in here!"

Perhaps he was right. Maybe this _was_ too high. And she didn't truly know just how deep the lake was. This had been stupid. But she had been desperate. Now, her only thought was to get back into the relative safety of the car. Slowly, she turned onto her stomach and tried to crawl back towards the sunroof.

The doctor felt the wind and the rain pattering him on the head as they flew across the lake. Damn this girl's penchant for rash behavior! She was going to get herself killed! As Alex crawled towards him, a strong gust of wind rocked the car and she had to pause to keep from falling. She gazed up at him, her eyes wide, her face pale and spattered with raindrops.

"I-I can't!" She stretched out an arm, trying to reach, but she couldn't quite make it. "I c-can't get to you," she cried. "P-Please... can you stretch your arm out just a little further?"

Robotnik grunted as he attempted to squeeze himself a little further out the sunroof. "This window... Ngh! ...was not made with the 'hefty gentleman' in mind!" With a deep breath, he managed to wedge himself out a bit further and stuck out his arm. "Take my hand!"

For the briefest of moments, Alex wondered, absurdly, if she ought to be flattered by his desire to help her. It was so surreal, being in a position where Dr. Robotnik was trying to rescue her. Of course, his reasons for doing so were purely selfish, but Alex supposed beggars could not be choosers. Although he stretched his arm out to her, it was hardly enough. Alex timidly reached out, only to quickly drop her hand to brace herself onto the car.

"I-I can't!"

"You have to try or you _will_ die!"

Alex risked a glance at the water below. It was so far down. He was probably right. There was no way she could survive such a fall. The water, while by no means shallow, most surely could not be deep enough to contend with the sheer momentum that gravity's force would weigh upon her body, should she fall from such a height.

Swallowing and gritting her teeth, Alex slowly crawled towards him. She almost couldn't believe she was willingly returning to her captor, but the alternative was too grisly to consider.

Robotnik tried his damnedest to reach out to the girl as best as he could. He would've told the Driver Mecha to stop the vehicle, but the girl would slip right off if the vehicle's momentum was stopped dead. He couldn't risk that. Inside the vehicle, Sage was telling the Driver Mecha to slow down gradually so that neither Alex nor the doctor would be jolted.

In her fear, Alex was flickering, but she hardly noticed, so focused was she on getting to safety. She had just made it within a foot of Robotnik. She stretched out her arm. Robotnik had his arm out as far as he could get it. Their fingers were so close, they were practically touching.

"That's it!" he said. "Just... a little more..."

Their fingers brushed for but a moment when another strong gust of wind blew by, rocking the car in its turbulence. Alex lost her balance and slipped off. Robotnik made one last desperate attempt to grab her, but it was too late.

"AHHH! NO!!" he shouted as the girl plummeted towards the water with a scream.

There was no way the air car would be fast enough to loop around and catch her, but that didn't stop Robotnik from spouting the order.

"Turn us around! We have to go back for her!"

It looked like this was the end for her. The girl's body would be dashed upon the turbulent lake water as it roiled in the storm. But then, something spectacular happened. Halfway down, her body briefly paused in its descent, as though momentarily floating. With a flicker, she blipped out, then reappeared about three meters above the lake. Then, she fell into the water with a splash.

Alex held her breath as she was submerged into the ice-cold depths of the lake. With a kick of her legs, she shot up and broke the surface of the water with a gasp. Astounded at having survived, for a moment, Alex merely treaded water, trying to comprehend exactly how she had survived. Then, it occurred to her that this was her chance at escape!

Kicking off her shoes and her track pants, for they would only weigh her down, Alex began to swim. There was a fair distance from where she was and the shoreline, but she estimated that it had to be about the same length as a middle-distance event in a swimming competition, at least a 400 freestyle. She could do it! And once she reached land, she could make a break for it; run and hide somewhere until she was able to find help and call the police.

High above, Robotnik and his henchmen bore witness to the heart-stopping fall and the subsequent Chaos Control that slowed Alex's plummet.

"Master!" said Sage. "She's survived!"

"I can certainly see that!"

"Look!" yelled Stark. "She's swimming to shore... and she's a freaking beast at it!"

Robotnik was granted the opportunity to witness what Sage and Stark had borne witness to earlier – Alexandra Parker could swim. Like a fish! For all her clumsiness and lack of grace on land, she was a mermaid in the water. And it very well looked like she just might escape his clutches if they didn't act fast.

"Take us down! She must _not_ escape!"

Down below, Alex was thinking the same thing. Robotnik would not allow her much chance to escape. She just had to keep going. She couldn't stop to tread water for a breather. She had to keep going.

_Just like a competition,_ she kept telling herself with every stroke.

Unfortunately, there were three things working against her – her exhaustion from earlier that day, for she'd had a challenging meet and had run clear across campus to escape Sage and Stark's pursuit; the pain in her ankle which she had tweaked while fleeing from said pursuit; and the undeniable fact that the storm was making the lake water choppy.

With every few strokes, the turbulence of the water forced her back a half-pace and she had to expend twice the energy to keep going. She was about three yards from the shore when she got a cramp. Her leg gave out and she could go no further. Weary and in pain, Alex's strokes weakened and she began to sink.

_So,_ she thought dismally. _This is how I die. How ironic._

She thought briefly of her mother – and of Sonic – and what they would think, how they would feel when they heard that her body had washed ashore in North Lake City. This tragic idea gave her the strength to kick towards the surface once more, but in so doing, she spent the last of her energy. Having nothing left in reserve, Alex began to sink one final time.

Above, the air car propelled itself faster, zooming low across the water to where the girl had last been spotted. As Alex began to sink, suddenly, there was a splash in the water and a human shape shot like a torpedo after her. As water filled Alex's lungs and the corners of her vision began to darken, she felt an arm loop around her and she was pulled back to the surface. When the choppy water broke, Sage was holding Alex tightly against his body as the air car hovered a mere couple feet above the water.

Stark was reaching out of the open car door. Carefully, Sage pushed Alex up into Stark's arms and the larger android pulled her into the car. Sage climbed into the vehicle and closed the door behind him. He took a seat next to Robotnik while Stark kept a grip on Alex in the seat across.

Coughing and sputtering, Alex leaned forward and vomited lake water onto the floor. Hair wet and plastered to her face, she was soaked to the bone. And though she still wore her Scottstown University Swimming jacket, it was soaked through, and her shoes and pants were gone. Wracked with violent shivers from her ice-cold plunge, Alex could do naught but cough and tremble.

Robotnik, who had since returned to his seat, winced at the mess on the floor. Beside him, Sage was dripping on the leather upholstery. With a huff, he leaned back in his seat.

"I'll have to order a crew of Cleaning Mechas to come and properly clean this car up. I will _not_ have my luxury sedan smelling of lake water and mildew."

Alex could just barely hear Robotnik's voice over the sound of her own retching. Luxury sedan... strange words that one would not expect to be spouted by Dr. Robotnik. It almost would have been comical in its absurdity, were it not for Alex's current state of affairs.

"That... was a very... _very_... foolish idea, Miss Parker."

Alex heaved once more, but this time nothing came up. "A-Agreed," she said, her lips blue and trembling. "B-But I a-almost made it. I was s-so close..." She crossed her arms, hugging herself for warmth as she trembled.

Robotnik let out a sound that was something between a 'hmph' and a laugh. "Close? Close to drowning, perhaps. You were _never_ close."

Despite his master's words, Sage didn't entirely agree. He knew what the girl was capable of. He'd been mesmerized by her at the swim meet, and further impressed with her prowess in the lake. No doubt the day's prior events had rendered her too exhausted to get to safety. If it weren't for that...

Alex's eyes filled with tears. Her near-escape had offered such a tantalizing promise, and to have failed when she was oh so close only served to throw her into deeper despair. She was starting to think she would have been better off if she'd drowned. Still hugging herself and shivering, she buried her face into Stark's shoulder and sobbed.

"P-Please... I want to go home. Please let me go home..."

Robotnik gnashed his teeth, his bushy mustache twitching. "The only place _you're_ going, Miss Parker... is to _my_ home! And you should be thankful. If it weren't for Sage, you'd be at the bottom of the lake by now. He saved your life."

"Y-Yeah..." said Alex casting a glance at Sage who was sitting across from her, his expression as stoic as ever despite dripping from head to toe. "A-And I'd thank him, too... if it weren't for the f-fact that I'm n-not so s-sure he did me a f-favor." More tears spilled down her cheeks, mixing with lake water. "I w-would've r-rather d-died..."

Robotnik let out a sound of disgust. "Please. I've had enough melodrama for one day. You've been proving to be more of a headache than you're worth. I wish that power inside you _was_ just a Chaos Emerald. Then I could just take it from you and kick you out of my car. But as such, it looks like I'm stuck with you." He crossed his arms and glared at her. "Damned teenagers."

The entire time Alex sat across from him in her jacket and swimsuit, shivering, trembling, and crying, Sage had his eyes on her. With her shoes and pants now gone, he had a good view of her long, smooth legs. He could see the muscles flexing under her skin.

Those were powerful legs. He had the sudden urge to reach out and touch them, but he resisted the temptation. Although she was shivering with cold and utter despair, Sage found that she looked oddly intriguing in this moment. It stirred in him strange feelings which he thought he might have felt once before, long, long ago, though he couldn't explain it. Perhaps he was malfunctioning.

Alex never noticed the way Sage looked at her. Instead, her eyes were on Robotnik. "People are gonna n-notice I'm m-missing, and th-they'll call the p-police." Though with her shivering and stammering, this threat was not as convincing as she would have liked.

Robotnik arched a brow. "Oh? Oh no... then I should definitely let you go." He tilted his head back and laughed. Stark, seeming to pick up on a social cue of some sort, laughed along with his master. Sage alone remained silent.

Robotnik leaned towards her and Alex recoiled, pressing back further against the seat. "You _do_ remember what I did at Edgar Roman's house, don't you? You _do_ remember just who the hell I am, don't you?" His eyes narrowed and he let out another harsh laugh. "Of course, you do. If anyone knows, it's Little Miss 'Sonic's New Bestie.' Do you really think I'm worried about any police or military anyone could send after me? Please... I've seen who your president is. I'll be running this country by the end of month."

Alex had nothing to say to that, simply because she saw no way to possibly contradict him. He was right. He was right about everything. The only one who could stop him... the only one who could possibly rescue her... was Sonic. And he was locked away like a prisoner in her apartment all because she insisted it was too dangerous for him, never realizing until it was far too late that _she_ was the one in need of protecting.

Alex turned away from Robotnik and curled up in the corner by the window, hugging her knees to her chest and shivering as she pressed her head against the window and closed her eyes. She'd been so foolish, so conceited to think she could help Sonic, that she could protect Sonic. It was her own stupid fault she was in this mess. She had no one to blame but herself. And now... now she was screwed.

There was a chance Sonic might come looking for her. But he had no way of knowing where to find her, where Robotnik had taken her. And in so searching, he would likely expose himself. Crying and shivering, Alex relinquished all hope of ever being rescued.


	15. Chapter 15

"Keep a hand nearby, Stark. If she starts that Chaos Control business of hers again, latch onto her and don't let go. Then, if she _does_ disappear, at least she'll have _you_ for company."

Stark grinned and cracked his knuckles as he smiled wickedly at Alex. "With pleasure, Master."

"Would you like me to put her in a daze once more?" asked Sage helpfully, but Robotnik raised a hand and shook his head.

"I'm not listening to more of her half-conscious yammering. Besides, I'm going to have you run a self-diagnostic scan later. Ever since you did that earlier, you've been behaving somewhat... off."

Sage almost looked offended, but he would never question Robotnik. "As you wish, Master."

Alex barely heard Robotnik's words. She didn't even react to his threats or Stark cracking his knuckles. Even Sage's offer went unnoticed. They need not have worried. In her despair, Alex had given herself up to a numb hopelessness.

Robotnik glanced over the shoulder at the Driver Mecha. "Are we almost there?"

"Closing in on final approach, sir!"

Those words brought Alex back to the here and now. She looked between Robotnik and Sage's heads to peer through the windshield. At first, she saw nothing but clouds and the lake ahead. But then, like a rift in space, a domed docking bay slid open ahead of them. Robotnik's base was in the middle of the lake! And, just like the car, it was cloaked from view.

It was true, then. Sonic never _would_ find her. She'd be doomed to spend the rest of her natural born days locked in an invisible prison in the middle of North Lake's lake. And yet, Alex couldn't help herself; in spite of everything, she felt only awe at the majesty of such a large and imposing structure, a true testament to Robotnik's genius. It looked like something out of a science fiction movie.

Soon, the flying car plunged into the dim lighting of the docking bay, a large chamber which housed other vehicles such as the one Robotnik had flown the day he attacked Edgar Roman's estate. Alex could see another large hovercraft with two tertiary cockpits... For Sage and Stark, perhaps?

As the car landed, the entrance to the docking bay closed above them, blocking them from the imposing elements. The vehicle's cloaking device deactivated and the Lincoln sedan returned to its original shape.

Robotnik and his android minions exited the car, Stark dragging Alex out with them. She went without protest – one, because there was no point, and two, because she was mesmerized by the magnificence of where she was.

"Ah..." said Robotnik, stretching contentedly. "Home sweet home."

He tucked his hands behind his back and led the way to a large metal door which led out of the docking bay. Sage and Stark followed closely behind, Stark keeping a firm hold on Alex, who couldn't help marveling, jaw agape, at her surroundings.

"Welcome, Miss Parker, to the Robo Dome, the headquarters of the soon-to-be Robotnik Empire!"

Alex's wandering gaze returned to her unwanted host in disbelief. "S-Seriously? _The Robo Dome_?" _That_ was the name he'd given to this amazing marvel of science? Something so goofy, so corny it could have been the name of something invented by AoStH Robotnik? "What a stu—"

But whatever she'd been about to say was overtaken by a coughing fit. Barefoot, in naught but her swimsuit and a sports jacket, still soaked from head to toe, Alex had been exposed to the worst elements of a nor'easter windstorm. Though it may well have been this coughing fit that saved her the wrath her intended commentary no doubt would have earned her at the behest of her captor.

Robotnik turned toward her, lifting an eyebrow. He could see that the elements beyond the dome had taken their toll on the girl, and he had no desire for her to fall ill.

"I want my new 'volunteer' in tip-top shape. Stark, take her down to Holding Level Alpha. Get her dry and warmed up. And show her to her new... accommodations."

Stark grinned wickedly once more. "Certainly, Master."

"You come with me, Sage. I want to make sure you're running at max."

"Yes, Master."

Sage glanced one last time at Alex before following Robotnik to an opposite set of doors. As the two departed, Robotnik raised a hand in mock farewell.

"Enjoy your stay, Miss Parker!"

With that, they were gone, and Alex was left to the mercy of Stark as he dragged her through the labyrinthine corridors of Robotnik's base. He led her down dark hallway after dark hallway, down elevators and through a plethora of doors. They often passed by robots marching through the halls. Some appeared to be built for menial purposes while others were armed with weapons. But all of them seemed to have the same basic shape and vague, featureless faces, just like the Driver Mecha.

As Alex helplessly followed Stark, the aesthetic of the complex began to strike a familiar chord with her. It almost looked like the inside of the Death Star. There was no way this was an accident. From the sound of it, Robotnik had been on Earth as recently as the '80s and prior before he was – somehow – sent to Sonic's world, allegedly by Edgar Roman. So it was entirely possible he'd seen the films, and (from the looks of it) liked them. Alex wondered if he rooted for Darth Vader or Luke Skywalker, and furthermore wondered why she cared about something so asinine.

Still, Alex considered the strange humanity of it. She supposed Robotnik was only human, after all. Once upon a time, he'd been a normal person. Perhaps there was a chance that she could relate to him in some way. If she could do that, it might be the one way she could survive this experience.

Although it didn't sound like Robotnik was planning on killing her, it also didn't sound like he was planning on letting her go, either. But if she could connect with him on some level, perhaps even feign Stockholm syndrome (though the very words made her cringe), maybe he'd give her more freedom, let his guard down, or even allow her to return home. Alex was so lost in her musings that she almost didn't realize when they'd arrived at Holding Level Alpha. A series of prison cells lined the corridor. Not exactly the most welcoming place.

After walking past several cells, they stopped in front of a very different looking room. This one was sealed with a metallic gray door. There was a control panel and a long viewing window which looked in from the outside. The room was simply labeled, 'Processing.' Alex wasn't so sure she liked that word.

With the press of a few buttons on the control panel, Stark opened the door and beckoned Alex inside. "The Master wants to see you taken care of. So get in there."

Stark was not one to be taken lightly. After all, he was an immensely strong, and very dangerous android. But Alex hesitated nonetheless.

"What does that mean, 'Processing?'" she asked nervously. "And why the window? Is 'the master' a voyeur?" Even as these words slipped through her mouth, she nearly choked on them. God, she seriously hoped it was nothing like that.

The hulking android glared at her. "Yeah... he likes to look in to make sure that I haven't killed his prisoners when they talk back to me. Get in there already, before I stop being so nice to you!"

" _This_... is you being nice?" grumbled Alex, but she nonetheless did as she was told. She knew a losing battle when she saw one.

The room beyond was empty. No furniture, no screens. Just metal walls with glowing strips of light and a single raised platform in the middle of the room beneath a vented ceiling. The moment Alex entered the room, the door slid shut behind her, as she knew it would. Nonetheless, she jumped at the sound and spun around. She saw Stark gazing at her through the window. Through an intercom system, she heard him speak to her from outside.

"Stand on that platform. And do me a favor... don't get defiant with me, or the Master's Cleaning Mechas will have to come into _this_ room, too."

Alex glared at him through the window. "I'd love to see just how Robotnik would tear you apart if you hurt me," she spat back. "I'm precious cargo, remember?"

Stark's eyes narrowed viciously. "Accidents happen..." That, in of itself was more than enough of a threat.

Alex took a few steps towards the platform, then hesitated. Gulping nervously, she asked, "What's gonna happen to me if I stand on it? Not being defiant," she quickly added, for a part of her feared he might still make good on his threat. "I'd just kinda like to be prepared for what's to come."

Stark rolled his eyes and leaned his head back as though groaning exasperatedly at the ceiling. He was rather expressive for something that was supposed to be an android, though Alex supposed she didn't exactly have a basis of comparison.

"It's just a targeting platform for scanning beams. It's not gonna hurt you. This isn't some kinda firing squad and you're not gonna be turned into a robot."

_Funny he should say 'turned into a robot,_ thought Alex.

"Just get on the stupid platform!"

Alex reluctantly did as she was told. Though, already hating Stark with every fiber of her being, she decided to let him know just how she felt about him while she was up there.

"Scan this," she muttered, flipping him the bird.

Alex wasn't sure she liked the way Stark was grinning at her through the window. She would have expected him to be angry, or at least annoyed, over her gesture. But grinning... No, that couldn't be good. Uncertainly, Alex lowered her hand.

Stark pressed a button on the control panel outside the room and, suddenly, a pair of metal boots rose up out of the platform and clamped around Alex's feet.

"W-What...? H-Hey!"

Alex tried to pull out of them, but it was no use. She gazed pleadingly back towards the viewing window, but it had turned opaque so that it looked indistinguishable from the other walls. Next, the glowing light strips blinked out, plunging her into pure darkness. Alex screamed. The sound echoed throughout the chamber, reverberating off the walls and coming back to her. But once it had faded, all was still. Silent. There was no sound. None at all.

Alex closed her eyes (not to block out any sights, for there was simply nothing to see in the dark), but merely to concentrate.

_Chaos Control, Chaos Control,_ she thought desperately.

If there was ever a moment that she needed to do it, it was now. Most of the time when she did it, it was accidental. But she'd managed to tap into it briefly when she was attempting to escape Sage and Stark. So, if she tried, maybe, just maybe, she could do it again. But that time it had been such a short distance. Could she get herself all the way back to North Lake City, or even back to Scottstown? Oh, but Sonic had never gotten around to showing her how to do it properly!

Alex thought of Sonic, picturing his face in her mind, his big green eyes, his cocky smirk, the feel of his gloved hand in hers when they Chaos Controlled out of the gymnasium. She tried desperately to focus on him as a central point and attempt to warp to where he was.

_Sonic, please.... Please, please, please... Sonic..._

But she never had the opportunity to tap into her ability, for the light strips on the walls suddenly came back on, only this time they were emitting red laser lights. Alex stiffened as they swept over her, front and back, from side to side. When the scan was complete, the room went black once more, but only for a moment. Then, the pale blue light strips came back on and the viewing window became transparent once more.

"Good news... you seem fine."

"A-Allow me to disagree," Alex stammered tremulously. He had scared the hell out of her. Fists clenched, she glared at Stark through the window. "You seriously needed the evil boot clamps just for _that_?"

Stark didn't reply. Instead, he pressed another button on the panel and a digital voice announced, "Initiating Air Dry."

All at once, Alex was assaulted by high-pressure air from the ceiling and walls in the room. At first, she screamed in alarm, but then she realized it for what it was. Basically, a giant air dryer. When it was over, she was completely dry. Even her bathing suit and jacket felt as though they'd just come out of a hot dryer. Her hair was no longer damp, either, though windswept and tousled.

"Great," she muttered as she attempted to flatten her hair. "Thanks for that. I don't suppose this thing comes equipped with a hairbrush does it?" she asked, glowering at Stark through the window.

But Stark didn't reply to any of her questions or commentary. The boot clamps retracted and the door slid open. The hulking android stood in the doorway, staring at the disheveled girl.

"Out," he said simply.

Reluctantly, Alex obeyed. As she stood before him, Stark looked her up and down, grinning malignly. She'd been properly rattled and scared by what happened in there. Even if it all ended up being completely harmless, he was pleased to have frightened her.

"The Master prepared the Processing Room for the possibility of mass imprisonment. He's never actually had to use that room before. I'll let him know it works."

Alex was horrified by Stark's explanation. Her mind helplessly drifted to different points throughout history, concentration camps, prisoners of war... That seemed way too evil, even for Robotnik. But she supposed the man in the flesh was far different than any fictional iteration with which she'd been familiar.

Stark snickered to himself before pulling Alex along with him. " _Now_... you're going to _your_ room."

He dragged her down the corridor, passing by several empty jail cells. Alex was just wondering gloomily which one was to be hers when they arrived at a door at the end of the hall. Stark pressed a button beside the door and it slid open.

It was a far cry from the cells she'd seen on the way down. For one thing, this one had a door instead of bars, and for another, it was large and furnished. There was a simple bed built into the wall, a table with a couple chairs, an adjoining bathroom, and space to move.

"This one is yours."

Alex was a little surprised. "Thinks himself a gentleman, I suppose?" she mused. "Does he provide all the girls he kidnaps with such lavish accommodations or it just me?"

Despite her words – which were clearly sarcastic – she hesitated to enter. And why would it be otherwise? No matter how nice it was for a prison, it was still a prison.

Stark gave no response to her comments. Though, her hesitation to enter annoyed him. He was getting tired of babysitting this little girl. With a large open palm, he gave her a rough shove into the room. Alex stumbled and went sprawling onto the bed. Wincing, she turned onto her back and propped herself up on her elbows, glaring at Stark.

"In case you're wondering... This room doubles as an experimentation lab. That's why it's so bright and spacious in here. Enjoy!"

Alex went pale as he belted out a laugh then shut the door with a slam of his hand against the button outside. Though muffled, she could still hear his laughter echoing down the corridor.

Seized by an impulse too strong to control, Alex hopped off the bed and grabbed one of the chairs. With a scream, she threw it as hard as she could at the closed door. She had no aspirations that she could break the door open by throwing a chair at it, but it made her feel better anyway.

The chair broke on impact and she grabbed the second one, treating it the same. Last, she lifted the small table, and with a strength she didn't even realize she had (perhaps it was all adrenaline), she threw the table at the door. It, however, was more durable than the chairs and did not break. Weary, Alex fell to her knees on the floor and buried her face into her hands and sobbed.

_Sonic... Oh, Sonic, I should've trusted you. I should've told you_ everything! _I should've let you keep me safe. I wish you could rescue me, but you can't... You can't..._

***

Knuckles had spent the better half of the day tracking the Chaos Energy from both Alex and Robotnik's androids. He managed to find the location they'd Chaos Controlled to, and there, tire tracks. They were in some sort of vehicle. Perhaps something akin to the four-wheeled variety that he often saw coasting down the streets of Scottstown.

From there, the trail weakened, but it had not dissipated. It led him from the suburban college burg of Scottstown to the bustling, lakeside metropolis of North Lake City.

The day was quickly waning as he followed the trail. Along the way, he felt elevations of residual Chaos Energy. What could have accounted for such peculiar fluctuations? Either way, Knuckles knew he was on the right track, but with the lousy weather and evening fast approaching, he was losing light.

Eventually, the trail led him to an abandoned beach. And this was where it ended. Knuckles pressed his hands against the ground, his eyes closed as he tried to sense out the Chaos Energy. But there was nothing. This was it.

"Damn... I've lost it. Where could they have gone?"

Knuckles stood and clenched his fists.

"That damn Robotnik. I can't track them over the water! If only I had more time!"

A large boulder sat among the piles of driftwood at the shoreline, damp on one side where the gentle waves broke against it. In a moment of frustration, Knuckles slammed his spiked fist into it, splitting it in half.

"Tomorrow," he said. "Tomorrow, I'll start again. See if I can't find something more."

Knowing the longer he lingered the more he risked being spotted by someone, Knuckles took off. He had to find Patrick, though he certainly wasn't looking forward to breaking the news to the boy that he couldn't find his friend.

"Damn..."

***

A couple hours had passed, or at least that's what Alex surmised, given she had no way of telling time – no clock, no watch, no phone. She'd spent much of it crying, and the latter half pacing, thinking.

There had to be a way out of this.

_But I'm in way over my head,_ she thought to herself. _Perhaps if I had a weapon, but there's nothing I could..._

She glanced at the broken wood by the door, then at the sharp corners of the metal bed frame. A wild idea came to her. Wild... and dangerous. And likely to end in failure.

_But I have to try,_ she thought.

She could fashion a weapon out of the wooden legs of the chair. Perhaps whittle it into a weapon, a stake of sorts.

_If only Robotnik was a vampire, this would be a lot easier,_ she thought.

But still, a strong sharp wooden stabby thing was better than nothing. Once she crafted it, she could sit in the corner beside the door, wait for Robotnik to come in and then pounce.

She shuddered at the idea. Could she do such a thing? The thought of doing it, even to a villainous scoundrel like Robotnik, made her nauseous. Still, it was the only thing she could think of, and the activity might at the very least keep her mind occupied while she waited to discover what awful fate he had in store for her, whatever this 'project' of his was.

_Am I seriously thinking about stabbing someone?_ Alex wondered as she made her way to the door. She slid the overturned table out of the way, but as she bent down in front of the door to rummage through the broken wood, it slid open.

Alex gasped and stumbled backwards, falling onto her bottom, expecting Robotnik or one of his androids to enter and find her messing around. But no one entered, and after a brief moment, the door slid shut again. So... it was motion-activated. And Stark had forgotten to lock it! What luck!

Alex grinned. _Thanks, meathead._

Shoving the debris out of the way, Alex stood in front of the door once more and it slid open. With a deep breath she stepped out into the hall and glanced both ways. Nothing. No one. The coast was clear.

_But what now?_ she wondered.

She had no hope of navigating the place except through trial and error, but it was better than just sitting around in a prison cell.

_But even if I do find my way out of the building, where do I go from there? We're in the middle of a lake. A_ big _lake._ It was one of the Greats, in fact.Then, in occurred to her – perhaps Robotnik had a phone somewhere.

Why not? This was the 21st century and Robotnik accommodated himself as though he lived in the 24th. There had to be a phone _somewhere_. But who would she call? Not the police. After all, what would she tell them?

_"Hi, I'm Alexandra Parker. I was kidnapped by Dr. Robotnik and he's taken me to an invisible fortress in the middle of North Lake! Well, it's not_ really _invisible. It's just concealed with a cloaking device. Please come quick!"_

They'd never believe her.

Patrick, then?

After all, he'd been with her when her 'stalkers' came for her. He already knew she was in some sort of danger. But _this_ kind of danger? No way he'd believe her. And in the unlikely event that he _did_ , how could _he_ help her? Then... it came to her. Sonic! She could call Patrick and tell him to get a message to Sonic!

_"Patrick! Listen, I'm in trouble! Please, I need you to go to my apartment, knock on the door, and say out loud, 'Alex needs help! She's been kidnapped by you-know-who!' And brace yourself for what you might see when the door opens."_

Yeah, that's it. Patrick might freak out, but they could always talk him down later... or perhaps convince him he'd been hallucinating. But how could she get a hold of Patrick? She didn't exactly have his phone number memorized. Then, another idea occurred to her. She could call the college.

_But how would I get_ that _number?_

Maybe she could call the operator! Those still existed, right? With the press of 0, she could ask for the college, then tell an administrator that she was Patrick's sister. He had mentioned a sister, hadn't he? If she could fool them into thinking it was an emergency, perhaps they'd find a way to contact him.

_"I'm Patrick's sister, Alex Parker. There's a family emergency and I can't get a hold of him. Tell him to call Alex Parker back at this number right away!"_ And no matter how strange that message sounded, at the sound of her name, he was sure to do what she needed.

_Yeah, that's it._

Now... to find a phone.

Taking a deep breath, Alex picked a direction and took it. She was just rounding a corner when she nearly ran into a robot traversing the hallway. With a gasp, she leapt back and pressed herself against the wall. The robot merely rolled past without a second glance at her. But there was no way it hadn't seen her. Perhaps it didn't think her a threat. Alex also noted it wasn't one of the ones who carried weapons. Perhaps a cleaning mech or a bot programmed to perform some other menial task.

Wondering if perhaps it could help her, she tentatively called out to it. "U-Um... Excuse me!"

The robot swiveled around and Alex gasped, taking a step back as it rolled back towards her.

"Yes?" it inquired in a stiff, mechanical voice.

"Um, well, uh, I was just wondering... um... is there a telephone around here?"

The robot was silent for a moment. She thought perhaps it was appraising her, but she couldn't tell since his face was just as vague as the Driver Mecha.

"All outgoing messages must first be authorized by The Master."

Alex chewed her lip. Then, taking a shot, she said, "Uh... I... _am_... the master...?"

The robot quirked its head. A beam of light, much like the lasers in the Processing Room emanated from his face, scanning her from head to toe.

"Human female. Weight approximately 115 pounds..." Alex blushed. "Estimated age... 17 years old."

"I'm 18," said Alex huffily.

"You are not the master," it surmised, before turning around and rolling away.

"Uh, yeah, well, I'm, uh... I outrank the master!" she called after it.

It paused and turned back to face her. Encouraged, Alex said, "Uh, I'm... um... God...?"

The robot made a mechanical grinding sound which, if Alex didn't know any better, almost sounded like a scoff. "God is a human construct; a fabrication to which fleshies cling to assuage the fear of their own mortality. God... does not exist."

With that, it rolled away and disappeared around the corner. Alex shivered. _Well, that was a pleasant conversation,_ she thought grimly before turning around and continuing on her way. 

_Shame Scratch and Grounder aren't real,_ she thought glumly. _Bet I could trick_ them _into taking me to a phone. Grounder always seemed to have one in his chest compartment._ But as it was, it seemed Robotnik's real robots were either terrifying... or assholes.

Alex proceeded in the opposite direction. The Robo Dome's corridors all looked similar and there was no real way to tell one area from the other. The doors weren't labeled. She rounded a corner and spotted an elevator. The buttons on the elevator were only scarcely numbered and there was no telling what was on each level of the facility. Alex would have no choice but to just pick _something_ and make the elevator go. Recalling how far down they had descended to get to Holding Level Alpha, she figured the best course of direction was up.

She pressed a button and the elevator swiftly ascended to another floor. When the doors opened, Alex poked her head out, looking both ways. The coast was clear, and this level, whatever it was, didn't look like much of a holding area. Perhaps there'd be a telephone here or an armory or munitions room or _something_ she could make use of. Mustering her courage, Alex proceeded down the corridor.

Eventually, she found herself in a large corridor that was dark in color and only dimly lit. Alex made her way down the hallway, tiptoeing, as she feared she was now likely in an area more apt to be patrolled by Sage, Stark, or even Robotnik himself. It just seemed too nice to be a mere holding area.

At the end of the hallway was a large metal door. _That looks important,_ thought Alex, and so made her way in that direction.

She almost expected such an important door to be locked, but the moment she approached it, it slid open, admitting her entrance. Alex felt a little nervous, but steeled herself.

_Nothing ventured, nothing gained,_ she thought, and proceeded.

Inside was a large camber, and lining the walls were what Alex could only surmise to be stasis pods. Half expecting to see some creepy science experiments – aliens, chimeras, monsters, mutants, perhaps Shadow the Hedgehog – she was relieved to discover they were all empty, save one in the far back center of the room. This one was raised up on a pedestal illuminated by a pale blue light. Alex was helplessly drawn to it. She came to a stop just in front of it and gasped at what was inside.

A beautiful woman with long, wavy blonde hair, dressed in a gossamer nightgown, floated serenely inside the pod. She wasn't very old, perhaps anywhere from her late 30s to early 40s. Her hair and gown billowed gently within the liquid of the stasis pod, giving her an ethereal look. She almost appeared to be sleeping.

Entranced, Alex raised a hand and placed it against the glass. It was cool to the touch. _Just who,_ she wondered, _are you?_ And then, a more frightening thought – _What has Robotnik done to her? Is he planning to do the same thing to me?!_

Suddenly, Alex was feeling very creeped out. She took a slow step backwards, her eyes never leaving the floating woman. Then she heard a voice speak from the door behind her, and it was the absolute last voice she wanted to hear right now.

"And just what are _you_ doing in _here_?"

With a gasp, Alex spun around. Dr. Robotnik stood in the doorway dressed in his more recognizable attire of black Kevlar tights and red coat with gold and white accents. Here he was in all his eccentric glory, and looking all the more imposing for it.

Slowly, he walked towards her, though Alex noted he wasn't coming at her threateningly. In fact, his hands were tucked behind the small of his back as he asked, almost conversationally, "How did you get out of your room?"

Maybe she wasn't in as much trouble as she thought. Nevertheless, she was caught. Her escape attempt was officially thwarted. Nothing remained but to submit to him. At least he no longer seemed to be in a bad mood.

_The wonders a change of clothes can make,_ thought Alex, rather wishing herself that she had something else to wear aside from her bathing suit and athletic jacket. A pair of slippers, at least, would be nice. Robotnik's fortress was cold. Especially this room

Nonetheless nervous, Alex took a step back from him as he approached, stammering, "U-Um, I... Uh, that is..." Alex saw no reason to lie. Almost feeling embarrassed on his behalf, she shifted nervously. "Well, um, actually... the door was unlocked."

For a moment, Robotnik simply stared at her. Then with an exasperated sigh, he smacked a gloved hand to his face. "That... idiot," he muttered.

His reaction almost elicited a laugh out of her. But knowing that she must maintain a healthy dose of fear at all times, else she become complacent and _really_ develop Stockholm syndrome, Alex suppressed it.

_I will NOT get Stockholm syndrome!_ she insisted.

But another voice in her head argued, _'But is it not true that just as you're a fan of every hero from the stories and games you love, you are equally a fan of the villains? Under the right circumstances, you have the potential to geek out around even HIM.'_

Alex didn't want to believe this was true. Not with the level of danger she was in, nor with how supremely wicked Robotnik – the real man – was. But at the moment, he seemed anything but. It was strange. Very strange.

With a sigh, Robotnik lowered his hand and tucked it behind his back with the other. "Well... I suppose there's no sense in my getting angry, is there? At least, not at you."

Alex was caught off guard by this curious bipolarism, particularly as he gazed wistfully up at the woman in the stasis pod.

_Okaaay... what the hell is this about?_

Robotnik continued to gaze up at the woman, not saying a word. In fact, he was almost set to ignore Alex. But not entirely thinking of that, Alex remained, her curiosity refusing to let her leave his presence.

Taking a step towards him and joining him at the pod, she tentatively asked, "At the risk of pissing you off, which I really don't want to do since you seem to be so mellow right now, what's with the floaty woman? And please tell me you're not gonna put _me_ in one of those things," she added, crossing her arms and hugging herself to keep from shivering.

Robotnik turned his head to arch a brow at her. "I have no reason to put you in a stasis pod.... unless you plan on dying sometime soon and haven't told me."

"D-Dying???"

He returned his gaze to the woman in the pod, pressing his hand against the glass. "As for her... Her name is Maria Boddick. And she is... she _was_... my wife."

Alex took a step backward, staggering beneath the weight of his words. "Your.. wife???"

Several thoughts were running through Alex's head at once that she could hardly keep them organized. _Robotnik has a wife?! He's married?! Her name is Maria?! In the video games and comics that's his deceased cousin's name! That's a crazy parallel! How does that even happen?_

Alex ran a hand through her hair and shook her head. "That... was the _last_ thing I was expecting you to say," she admitted.

But why was she in that tube? Perhaps he had _created_ himself a wife. But no, that didn't seem right. When Alex had asked if he was going to put _her_ in one, he's said not unless she planned on 'dying' sometime soon.

"S-So," she stammered, drawing closer to the tube. "She's... she's dead?" Alex considered the woman in the stasis tube and the strange liquid inside which kept her floating, giving her that ethereal look. "And, so, like, you're gonna do the Mary Shelley thing and bring her back to life or something... right?" She cast a sideways glance at Robotnik.

At first, he was silent, as though he was ruminating, uncertain what to say. Of course, this also surely had to be something of a touchy subject for him. Finally, he drew a deep breath and spoke in a low tone.

"No. I'm not. Perhaps, once, I had aspirations to see my dearly departed wife returned to me. But I have long since left that endeavor behind. As brilliant as I am, bringing back the dead is simply one thing that I cannot do."

Though she was afraid to do it, for fear he might think it impertinent, Alex studied Robotnik's face. She was blown away by what she saw. Sorrow and anguish. Such human expressions!

_And yet,_ she thought, _You already came to the understanding that he was more than just a comic book or video game villain. He's a real person with real emotions._ Should _it be so odd?_

And at the same time... yes.

Robotnik removed his hand from the glass and tucked it, once more, behind the small of his back. "I should know. I tried it twice before... and that project ended up being a failure."

Alex's eyes grew wide. "Twice? On _her_? How? And... and what happened?" She instinctively winced as though fearing an enraged rebuttal for her questions.

Once again, Robotnik arched an eyebrow at her questions. The girl was certainly a curious one. Though, curiosity could be a good thing as it was the basis for all science. If this girl proved to be smart enough for his liking, perhaps he could find even more uses for her.

"No," he replied. "I never experimented on her... because I'd already failed before I even _tried_ with her." He lowered his head, still keeping his hands tucked behind his back. "I was sent, through complicated circumstances, to the hedgehog's world. But I wasn't alone. My wife, Maria, and my two sons, Ennis and Ivan, were with me. We tried to make the best of things on that world, tried to live the best lives that we could. But after a time, there was a terrible accident. And my wife and sons were killed."

Alex listened, bursting with curiosity and filled with wonder as Robotnik regaled her with his tragic past. She was almost surprised he was bothering to do so. Perhaps being in this room with his wife – even if she was long since deceased – brought something out in him. A bit of the man he once was.

"With my knowledge in cybernetics, I thought I could revive them... with new bodies. I first attempted it with my sons. While I successfully created fully multi-functional cybernetic life-forms... their minds never materialized. Only... vague and basic... hollow... reflections of their personalities remained."

Alex's eyes lit with understanding. "Sage and Stark..." she murmured softly. "They're..." She trailed off and covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes wide. _How horrible._

Either Robotnik didn't hear her murmur the names of his androids, or he intentionally ignored her. "They were useful," he continued. "But, ultimately, they were failures. They weren't my sons. So, I gave up that endeavor. But I couldn't bear to part with Maria. So, I've kept her in stasis ever since. My poor... brilliant... beautiful Maria..."

For a moment, Alex was silent. "So that's it," she said softly. "That's the tragic backstory."

Robotnik looked at her and she immediately lowered her gaze with a flush. "I'm sorry," she said, "I hadn't intended to say that out loud. It's just... Well, it's always a big driver of what anyone does, right? I'm so sorry."

She reached out and placed a gentle hand on his arm only to swiftly draw it back with a gasp, as though she'd surprised even herself. Robotnik's hairless brows raised, an expression that suggested that his eyes were wide with surprise behind those reflective lenses. This was interesting. Did this girl actually have pity for him? No one had ever had pity for him before. He wasn't sure how to process such a thing.

Alex crossed her arms to ensure she would not give into the temptation to touch him again. She gazed up at Maria Boddick once more. "She's beautiful," she said. "She almost looks like she's just waiting for a prince to come and kiss her awake."

Robotnik sadly shook his head. "If only it were truly that simple, Miss Parker. If only..."

Hugging herself tighter, Alex turned her back on the pod, unable to look any longer. "How can you manage it?" she asked. Though, these words, Robotnik was at a loss to understand.

"I don't follow. Manage what?"

Alex's back was turned to both him and the pod, as though she couldn't bear to look at it anymore. She hugged herself tighter. "How do you stand having her like that?" she asked, her voice tremulous. "I mean, seeing her every day, almost looking like she's alive, still fresh and beautiful, and yet knowing she's not alive... that she's dead... that she's never coming back. Doesn't it torment you?"

To Robotnik's surprise, the girl was crying.

"M-My dad," she said. "He died in an accident with a drunk driver, back when I was still in high school. Everything was crushed. His legs, his chest..." She shuddered at the memory. "We had to put him on life support. Under the sheets, he just looked like he was sleeping. But... he wasn't going to make it. We had to take him off. There was no other choice... no other way."

Tears rolled down her cheeks, falling onto the sleeves of her athletic jacket and making a soft scruffing sound against the Teflon.

"In the beginning, I used to visit his grave all the time. But it got harder and harder... the reminder. And so... I stopped going." She shook her head, causing more tears to fall down her cheeks. "I just don't understand how you can manage looking at her like that, day in and day out, and not break down completely. I know _I_ couldn't handle it."

The girl was quiet for a long while. Robotnik was mulling over just what to say to her when she spoke once more.

"Maybe," she sniffled, "Maybe if we had that kind of technology, cybernetics or whatever... maybe Dad wouldn't have had to die. He could've been a... a cyborg or something. But that stuff, it isn't real. It's just science fiction."

Robotnik couldn't find any way to disagree with her. After all, in all his personal endeavors, he never managed to revive anyone. The girl was right. That stuff _was_ just science fiction.

Alex wiped the tears from her eyes, only for more to take their place. "Does it ever get any easier?" she asked, turning to face him. "Does the pain ever go away?" Alex hugged herself tighter and began to cry harder.

For a moment the two just stood there, Alex falling into her own sorrow and Robotnik feeling the waves of it. The doctor glanced at his wife, looking as though she were simply resting in a rejuvenating bath, but knowing that she would never open her eyes again. Robotnik returned his gaze to Alex and was surprised to see that she was beginning to flicker.

So... it would seem fear was not the only thing that triggered her Chaos Energy. Sorrow and despair had the same effect. But having equipped his base with Chaos Energy dampeners, there was no fear of her activating Chaos Control, either intentionally or accidentally.

To Alex's surprise, Robotnik placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. At first, she gasped and stiffened, but slowly the tension left as she realized he didn't intend to harm her. Robotnik drew in a deep breath, keeping his hand on her. By God... he could _feel_ the energy radiating from her.

"No," he said, "It doesn't. In fact, sometimes it metastasizes. In time, you just learn to harden yourself against it."

Alex brushed uselessly at her eyes. Despite her efforts, the tears continued to fall. "Why?" she asked. "Why are we so far behind? You're a scientist. So _you_ tell me... Why can't we save people? There are so many diseases we haven't cured yet! Why, when we're surrounded by all this modern technology, by virtual reality video games and smartphones and all this other useless crap, why can't we fix the important things?"

The Chaos Energy was still raging inside her. It appeared to be tied into her emotions. So far, fear and, now, sorrow and despair had triggered it. What else could make this energy rise in her, he wondered.

"S-Sometimes," she said. "Sometimes I worry about my mom. She'd been sick for so long. I'm afraid I'll lose her, too." She turned her pleading eyes upon Robotnik. "Why can't we just inject people with some sort of rejuvenating substance or... or something? No one should ever have to die." She lowered her head, only to cry harder.

Then, Alex felt his hands take ahold of both her shoulders. When she looked up at him, his expression was sympathetic, but determined.

"And that's why... I want your help," he said. "This world is too sick to survive. But a new world can rise from its ashes. And under _my_ new regime people won't have to die. Perhaps we can't bring back those we've lost, but maybe... we can save those we still have."

Alex thought about her mother, of how good it would be to cure her, to have her healthy again, to not lose another parent. But could Robotnik really be trusted?

_Of course not!_ a voice inside her scoffed, appalled by her considerations. _He kidnapped you! He_ threatened _your mother! Is this really the kind of man you want to trust to 'heal' her?_ _To 'heal' the world?_

Besides, what would her Dad say if she willingly helped Dr. Robotnik?

Alex recalled a memory from her childhood. She and her father were playing Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for the Sega Genesis.

_"Ha, ha! We totally smoked that ol' Buttnick!" her father crowed triumphantly as Robotnik, with a charred face and frizzled mustache, retreated to await them in the next zone._

_"Buttnick?" asked Alex, confused._

_Her father laughed. "Oh, that's what Sonic used to call him in the old Saturday morning cartoon."_

_"Saturday morning cartoon?"_

_Her dad gaped at her, incredulous. "What? I haven't shown you that yet? Oh man... That needs to change right now!"_

Alex remembered watching SatAM with her father. She knew the kind of world Robotnik would create – a veritable wasteland of pollution, upon which he reigned supreme with his advanced technology, a dictatorship where all were subservient to him, and anyone who stepped out of line were turned into robots. Maybe Robotnik _could_ develop such technologies under his new regime, but at what cost? After all, the end didn't always justify the means. And had she not learned by now how he operated?

_I mustn't let him sway me to the Dark Side,_ was Alex's thought, and one particularly apropos given her surroundings.

She knew her answer, but to thoughtlessly give it to him would only land her in more danger. It was prudent to be honest while making him _think_ he could sway her. After all, if Robotnik was a master manipulator, tricking gullible people into thinking he was on their side, why couldn't two play at that game? But she couldn't bring herself to agree with him outright, not even to trick him. She could only meet him halfway.

"If that is really your end goal..." she said slowly. Alex shook her head, more tears spilling down her cheeks. "I can want it just as desperately as you. It's tempting. But I don't agree with your methods. You already know this."

Robotnik frowned as he studied her face. That look of consideration which crossed her fair features did not go unnoticed. But the girl was stubborn yet. She insisted that she didn't agree with his methods. Of course, she wouldn't. But then again, she didn't even know his methods, nor what he was actually planning.

He had no interest in carrying this conversation further, at least not now. With a smile, he put a comforting arm around her shoulders and changed the subject to a most bewildering thing.

"You must be hungry," he said gently. "I know I am. We can talk more later."

Alex gaped at him. Her expression was so comical he couldn't help a small chuckle. Carefully, he turned her around and guided her out of the chamber, Alex feeling as though she was suffering a sort of mental whiplash.


	16. Chapter 16

After traversing through corridors and taking a few more elevators, which Alex could swear moved sideways as well as up and down, they finally came to a room with a long table and chairs, far brighter in color than most of the other chambers she'd seen thus far.

"This looks like the meeting room in Cloud City," Alex marveled, hearkening to the scene in The Empire Strikes Back when Lando Calrissian led Han and Leia to Darth Vader. She glanced skeptically up at Robotnik. "I think George Lucas might consider your Robo Dome a copyright infringement," she informed him. "You did this on purpose, didn't you?"

"What can I say? Those films had stylistic vision!"

Alex was blown away. She shook her head, utterly baffled. This was just... too weird. And Robotnik was still just full of surprises as he pulled a chair out for her like a gentleman. It was a far cry from the way he'd been in the car on the way to his base. Bewildered, Alex took a seat.

"Why are you being so nice to me all of a sudden?" she asked, unable to help herself. "Is it because you think you've won me over?" Perhaps this was a dangerous line of questioning, but she was helplessly curious. In fact, his 'niceness' almost made her _more_ nervous.

Robotnik smiled as he took a seat at the head of the table beside her. "I know it may be difficult to believe, but, in truth, I am very much a gentleman. I also don't see how it would benefit me to threaten you at the dinner table. That's just bad manners."

Alex leaned back in her seat, still skeptical. "I'm just wondering when the fallout's gonna come," she mumbled.

Robotnik pressed a sequence of buttons on the back of his glove and brought the back of his hand to his mouth, speaking into the commlink. "Sage, Miss Parker will be joining me for dinner. Prepare her something as well. And Stark..." This name he said with a slight groan to his voice. "Bring our friend, Mr. Roman. No doubt he'll require a break from his assignment."

_Mr. Roman?_

So, it would seem Robotnik hadn't killed his 'old friend' after all. But what did it mean? And what _assignment_ had he been working on for Robotnik?

A door behind her slid open and several Mechas entered and set the table. They were more of the faceless automatons, and Alex couldn't help but shiver as their limbs reached past her to set the plates and silverware before her.

"Um... you do realize how creepy these things are, right?" she asked Robotnik, scrunching tighter in her seat to avoid any possibility of their cold, metallic hands brushing against her as they poured her a glass of water.

"They're simply basic, customizable robots that I can re-purpose for any possible need. I can add accessories, armor, or weapons if need be, but I don't waste time on the aesthetics."

"I had the misfortune of having a philosophical conversation with one of them earlier," she said. "It wasn't pleasant."

Robotnik arched a hairless eyebrow. "I didn't build Mechas to be philosophers. I built them to be efficient."

"Yeah, well, just don't invoke the name of the Almighty around them if you don't want to get supremely depressed," she muttered, taking a sip of water. To her surprise, it was the freshest water she'd ever tasted.

_Wow,_ she thought. _Wouldn't have pegged Robotnik for a Brita guy._

Robotnik saw her expression and grinned. "Believe it or not," he said. "That's North Lake water you're drinking. The Robo Dome is fully equipped with a state-of-the-art water filtration system. That way, I have nothing but the freshest water for drinking and cooking purposes."

Alex would not have expected this. Could Robotnik's proposed 'regime' be more of a utopia than the comics and cartoons displayed?

_But it's how you accomplish utopia that matters,_ she thought.

Robotnik's gaze hardened for a moment. "Did you think that just because I choose to surround myself with a force of mechanized automatons that I'd be drinking crude oil or something? Perhaps a can of 10 W 40 through a straw?"

"Well, to be fair," she said, "I also expected you to be grossly misproportioned and cartoonish... and a lot less scary," she added quietly.

Her words went unheard as another door slid open and Stark entered the dining room carrying Edgar Roman over his shoulder.

"Th-This isn't necessary! I promised that I wouldn't cause trouble! Please! Put me down!"

Stark, looking irritated, plucked the man off of his shoulder and plopped him down onto the chair across from Alex.

Mr. Roman was looking rather haggard and exhausted these days. But Alex had difficulty feeling pity for him. After all, he was working for Robotnik! But why? Alex opened her mouth to demand an explanation, but when Edgar's wide-eyed gaze fell upon her, he beat her to the punch.

"You!? What are _you_ doing here?" His eyes moved briefly to Robotnik before returning to her. "Are you in _league_ with this maniac?!"

Alex bristled. That should've been _her_ line! "Like hell I am!" she growled. "Do you think I'd just zip on over to have a cup of tea with Dr. Eggman in my freaking bathing suit? He kidnapped me, you idiot! And it's _your_ fault! It's ALL YOUR FAULT!" Unable to control herself, she lunged across the table at him.

Robotnik arched that infamous bare brow and took a slow sip of water as he watched the proceedings. In truth, he found it rather amusing. However, he couldn't very well have Alexandra tear Edgar apart. With a flick of his hand, he motioned to Stark.

Alex was halfway across the table to Roman when the android plucked her up as easily as a flower and planted her back in her seat. Robotnik arched his fingers, grinning at them as though he were an amused father going through the motions of separating his quarreling progeny.

"Now, now, children. We mustn't squabble. After all, we all have some business to discuss."

Alex crossed her arms and turned around in her seat, putting her back to Roman and Robotnik. "I don't want to be anywhere _near_ that jerk," she said petulantly, but her discomfort went unheeded.

Roman, wide-eyed, gaped at Robotnik. "What more business could we possibly have? Y-You kidnap me, force me to modify the REMgage to your specifications... and for what!? I have no idea what you're making me do! I don't even know how any of this is possible! I was certain that—"

"We've been over this, Edgar," said Robotnik, glaring at Roman and tapping his fingers together impatiently. "Whatever you believed the Dreamcaster to do... It wasn't what it did. I'm very thankful that your idiocy didn't end up killing me."

_Dreamcaster?_ thought Alex. That wasn't the first time she'd heard Robotnik use that term. _What does he mean by that? Does he mean the REMgage? Or is it something else?_

"But that's neither here nor there," said Robotnik. "We're not sitting here to discuss the past and how if it weren't for you, _none_ of this would be happening right now. We're here to discuss the future." He held his hands out towards Roman and Alex as though in a gesture of fellowship. " _Our_ future."

"I don't see why I need to be involved in any 'business' with two skeezy old men," Alex grumbled. "And I certainly do _not_ want to have dinner with _him_ ," she said, thrusting a finger in Roman's direction.

Edgar looked as though he didn't understand why most of her venom was aimed at him. Did he really not understand? Could he really be so dense? Alex supposed, to him, it made more sense for her to be angry with Robotnik than he. But the truth of the matter was, she was _afraid_ of Robotnik. Her anger, however... _that_ was reserved for Edgar Roman. For if it hadn't been for his REMgage, if it hadn't been for him pressuring her into trying it, she never would have been exposed to that chaos energy and become a living Chaos Emerald and subsequently a target for Robotnik.

Robotnik smirked. "That really is a shame," he said, "Because it looks as though dinner is served."

Sage had just entered through the same side door that the Mechas had come through previously. With him was the same crew of Serving Mechas, each with a bowl of side salads for the three of them, along with a selection of dressings. As inane as it might be, Alex couldn't help wondering just where the hell Robotnik did his grocery shopping, or better yet, how. Then again, she supposed he _did_ just waltz into North Lake Electronics that one day.

Sage, himself, served the main course; a meal of steak and rosemary roasted potatoes. One at a time, he set them in front of Robotnik and his guests, ending with Alex. The android leaned in close to her, almost to the point where his lips hovered at her ear.

"I do hope you enjoy the meal, Miss Parker. A high-spirited girl with an exquisite body like yours needs to keep up her strength."

If it were possible to go pale and blush at the same time, Alex was certain she accomplished it. She lifted her shoulder to the level of her ear, simultaneously cringing and shooing Sage away from her. Her eyes moved accusingly to Robotnik as she nudged him under the table with her foot.

Robotnik glanced at her, a glare on his face, but one which quickly disappeared as she gave him a meaningful look along with a brief flicker. His eyes moved to Sage. He hadn't expected such a salacious interaction from the android whom he referred to as his 'Infiltrator.' However, what he found particularly interesting was that it triggered a brief spike in the girl's Chaos Energy. Sage noticed it as well, as he slowly pulled away.

Robotnik waved a hand dismissively at the android. "That will be all, Sage. Let the girl enjoy her meal in peace."

Sage said nothing. He merely bowed his head and slowly backed away. Although he was standing a safe distance behind her, Alex could still feel his eyes on her.

_What the hell is up with that android? Did Robotnik give him a libido or something?_

She quickly zipped up her athletic jacket.

With all the grace of an upper-class man enjoying a five-star dining experience, Robotnik cut into his steak and stabbed a bit with a fork as he looked at Mr. Roman. "So what do you think, Edgar? My machines can prepare a delicious dinner, don't you think? It would be rude of you not to try it."

"T-Truthfully," Roman stammered. "I'm really not feeling all that hungry right now."

For a moment, Robotnik merely glared at him from behind his dark glasses. Then...

"Stark."

The hulking android stepped forward.

"If Mr. Roman doesn't eat his dinner... break his legs."

Stark grinned and cracked his knuckles. Face paling a bit, Roman quickly grabbed his knife and fork and dug into his meal.

Alex, who had been about to tell Robotnik the same thing, quickly followed suit. She took small bites. It wasn't that the food was bad. In fact, it was quite good. But each bite seemed to sit in her stomach like a rock, for her nerves were still quite bad.

For a long while, they all ate in silence, the only sound was that of forks and knives scraping across their plates. But finally, Alex could bear it no longer. With fork and knife in hand, she slammed her fists on the table loud enough to shake the dishware.

"Okay, what the _hell_ is even going on?!" she demanded. Her eyes moved from Robotnik to Edgar. "How do you guys know each other? What happened? And what the _hell_ do you want with me?! Aside from the fact I'm allegedly a Chaos Emerald? I'm sick of being kept in the dark! I deserve an explanation for Christ's sake!"

She knew this was unusually bold of her, particularly given her predicament. She knew the danger of making such boisterous demands. But she couldn't stand it any longer. She was about to lose her mind.

Robotnik set down his knife and fork and dabbed at his mouth with a napkin. Somehow this calm, refined behavior was all the more ominous. "You, Miss Parker, are in no position to demand anything from me."

Although he spoke softly enough and made no threatening gestures, his tone of voice was dangerous enough that Alex immediately knew she'd crossed a line. She was humbled once again by the unseen glare behind his glasses. The dark lenses almost seemed to flash like lightening as they caught the overhead fluorescents, making him all the more frightening.

However, for once, Edgar Roman came to her aid as he piped in. "That's a good question, actually! What do you need _her_ for? What's all this talk of emeralds and stuff? What has happened to you, Charles?"

"First of all... you will _not_ speak that name. Charles Boddick is GONE. Dead and gone. Understand me?"

Roman glanced nervously at Stark, who gave him a threatening grin. "S-Sure. Yeah. Whatever you say."

Robotnik turned his unseen gaze on Alex. "I suppose you do deserve _something_ of an explanation."

"Yes, thank you," she murmured with a hint of exasperation.

"Then get comfortable, because there's a story to be told here." He paused for a moment of silence, presumably to gather his thoughts. Then, he began.

"In the early 1980's, two men went into business with each other and came up with a brilliant idea for an invention. This may surprise you, Miss Parker, but people had already begun to dabble with Virtual Reality even as far back as that. It was simply far from being ready. However, those two men had developed a computerized, mental control system that could allow them to project their dreams into a digital space. They called their invention the Dreamcaster. They shopped it around to different companies. IBM, Apple... video game companies, such as Atari... and Sega."

So that's what the Dreamcaster was. It had been the prototype name for the REMgage back in the '80s. But Alex had a feeling that it did more than just that.

"However, there was always a fatal flaw in the system. There was no power source capable of sustaining the Dreamcaster. It always blew out power grids and proved to be quite dangerous to people who were using it... At least that was until a mysterious gemstone came into the possession of the two men, and the power that stone gave off was enough to make that machine show its true potential."

"Wait," Alex interjected. "Are you talking about a Chaos Emerald?" She leaned closer to Robotnik, unable to control her curiosity. "You are, aren't you?!"

_But how did a Chaos Emerald end up on Earth? And way back then, especially?_ she wondered, but she didn't dare interject a second time.

"Spot on, Miss Parker. Though the name 'Chaos Emerald' was not something I would've known at the time. One of the men saw this as an opportunity to make some real money, while the other thought it was too dangerous. But that one man... he didn't care and he sought to remove his business partner. When he realized that things would... disappear... when that gem pulsed with energy, he put it to good use... by making his partner _and_ his unsuspecting family vanish from the face of the Earth forever. But they didn't just disappear. Oh no, they didn't just disappear. Instead, they were sent to an alternate reality. An altogether different world that no one from Earth could imagine existed. And unfortunately for the greedy man, that gemstone vanished with them. Didn't it, Edgar?"

Roman's face was incredibly pale. Beads of sweat ran down his brow. And yet, through it all, he said nothing. Alex drew back in her chair, gazing at Edgar Roman with revulsion.

"So, you tried to kill -- to erase -- a man and his family. And you knew that machine was dangerous. You knew it, and you _still_ put me inside it. How could you do that? Doesn't that... haunt you?"

"N-No! Y-You don't believe all of this, do you?" Roman stammered, his eyes pleading with her.

"I do," she said softly. "It doesn't mean I'm on his side, but I believe him... because I know what you did to _me_ , the danger you put _me_ through."

"This... This is madness! All of this is absolute insanity! He... _He_ is clearly insane!"

Alex lowered her gaze. "Yeah, well, I know that, too," she mumbled.

"I don't know how you've pulled all this together, Charles, but I don't deserve—"

Robotnik slammed his hands down on the tabletop as he rose from his seat, glaring at Edgar. "YOU DESERVE ANYTHING I DECIDE TO DO TO YOU AND MORE, EDGAR! Because of _you_ , my life was ended! Because of _you_ , my family is _dead!_ "

"W-What are you talking about? That's obviously not true! Your sons are right here in front of you, playing along with this sick game!"

With a nod from Robotnik, Stark seized Roman by the throat and shoved him back, chair and all, against the wall. Roman's hands went to Stark's, frantically trying to pry the android's grip away from his neck.

Alex gasped and leapt from her chair, knocking it over in the process. As Robotnik strode towards a choking, struggling Edgar Roman, Alex slowly backed away from the table, eyes wide in her too-pale face.

"You don't understand _anything_ , Edgar," growled Robotnik, glaring down at him. "You've _never_ understood anything. You never had a mind for details."

"S-Stop it!" Alex shouted. "Please! If you act like that, you'll be no better than him!" She pressed her hands against her ears, whimpering as she continued to back away. _This is a nightmare. When am I gonna wake up? I just wanna go home..._

Inevitably, Alex backed up into the waiting hands of Sage, whose fingers curled around her shoulders, holding her firmly in place. Robotnik glanced over his shoulder at her.

"Right you are, Miss Parker. I should never allow myself to sink down to his pathetic level." His gaze returned to Roman. "Though, the next time you speak out of line, Stark here will ensure that you never speak again. Understand?"

Gasping and choking, Edgar did his best to nod his acquiescence. Robotnik nodded at Stark, and the android released Roman, who fell out of his chair and went sprawling onto his hands and knees, coughing and gasping for air.

Robotnik turned away from Edgar to face Alex. "I don't wish death upon our friend, Mr. Roman. In fact, I want all of us to work together on the project that's going to unify this entire world under the single flag of the Robotnik Empire!"

He walked slowly towards Alex, who tensed as though to move away, but Sage's hands clamped tighter upon her shoulders, ensuring that she could not retreat.

"So you see, Miss Parker... your cooperation is quite valuable to me."

"But you _still_ haven't told me what you want from me!" she insisted, her lips trembling. "And, frankly, I really don't want to have anything to do with this." Her wide eyes flicked to Roman, and then back to Robotnik again. "Whatever _this_ is. Why can't you leave me out of it? Or at least tell me what you plan to do with me?"

"Well, it's just another thing that you can be mad at Edgar for. Because if it weren't for _him_ , you wouldn't be a factor in any of this right now. And I believe you already know what I want from you." Robotnik's mocking grin slipped away as he glared hard at her. "You're a walking battery of Chaos energy, Miss Parker. And I need all the power I can get for my big project. You see, whereas I need Roman for his connections to the REMgage machine... I need _you_ to power it. Once I've redesigned it, of course, for _my_ purposes."

_But why?_ Alex wondered. If the REMgage had the power to send people to other dimensions, but Robotnik had been desperately trying to return to Earth all this time, then what did he need it for? What could he possibly want with it?

Alex thought about asking him, but then decided she didn't really want to know the answer. Whatever it was, it had something to do with conquering Earth 'under the flag of the Robotnik Empire,' as he'd said.

"You see, I have a theory, Miss Parker. You don't just have the power of _one_ Chaos Emerald inside you... but of _many!_ After all, you were Ground Zero for a teleportation strike from _all seven Chaos Emeralds!_ And, I believe, when motivated properly, you can put forth _exponential_ amounts of Chaos Energy. With you here, I won't even have to hunt the emeralds down. You, my dear, are all I need."

Robotnik loomed close enough to Alex that she was practically pressing into Sage just to escape the man's presence. Sage said nothing, but a smirk spread across his face. Alex shivered as she felt his hands trailing down her arms, as though exploring the organic lifeform in front of him, but she held Robotnik's gaze nonetheless.

"While I'm flattered you need me so badly," she said dryly. "You can't just kidnap young women and force them to be batteries for your machines! I'm a person, for God's sake! And I've done _nothing_ to you! Take your vengeance on this jerk, if you must," she said, her eyes flicking once more to Edgar Roman, "But leave me out of it! If you need a power supply, then collect all the Chaos Emeralds the normal way. I don't _want_ to be your damn battery! It isn't fair!"

Robotnik's mustache twitched in annoyance. "I don't recall a situation where I was giving you a choice. There was a time where I was being a little more polite about all this. But instead, you chose to insult me. You thought it prudent to mock me with your cartoons and video games. You've forfeited your allowance of options, Miss Parker."

Despite her fear, Alex could not take any more of his outrageous claims. "Polite? Polite!? You threatened my mother!" she shouted, tears welling like a fresh spring in her eyes. "If you think _that's_ polite, then you and I have very different opinions on what constitutes good manners, _Robotnik_ ," she growled, speaking his chosen name with disdain. "And you're seriously going to hold a petty grudge over something as stupid as a cartoon? You're being completely unreasonable!"

But Robotnik was adamant. His annoyance was showing, his expression growing dangerous. Alex had nothing left. No matter how reasonable or articulate she was, there was nothing she could do or say to convince him to let her go. But she so desperately wanted him to think he couldn't get away with it. And so, she said the first thing that came to her mouth.

"Sonic will save me," she told him with a glower. "He won't let you get away with any of this crap!" She flushed, realizing how cliché that sounded. And, furthermore, how impossible. She'd never even told Sonic that Robotnik had been stalking her. He wouldn't know where to look. But, damn it, she had to say something! And perhaps, just maybe, it would make Robotnik sweat just a little. But this time, the doctor's mustache lifted in an amused grin.

"And there it is," he said. "I was wondering when those words were going to spill uselessly from your mouth." The way he mocked her for her predictability made Alex blush and lower her gaze. "Don't be so sure you know anything about your hedgehog friend. Sonic is no hero. Sonic is a force of destruction! I never did tell you how my family was killed, did I?"

Alex lifted her gaze to him once more, her wide-eyes flicking briefly to Edgar Roman, then back to Robotnik. "Y-You said... Just a moment ago you blamed Mr. Roman," she stammered.

"Oh, I do. I most certainly do. If he hadn't done what he did, my family might still be alive today. But he's not the one that truly _caused_ their death. _That_ honor... lies specifically with the hedgehog!"

Alex furrowed her brow. That didn't sound right. She braced herself for a brazen lie, and yet... something told her he wouldn't lie. Not about something like this. Not about his family. Not about the beautiful woman who floated lifeless in that stasis pod. And so, Alex found herself listening once more to Robotnik's tale. This time, not one about how he'd been unwittingly transported to another dimension, but of the day his family died. Of the day Sonic allegedly killed them.

"This may come as a shock, but there was a time, shortly after being sent to that other world, that the hedgehog and I were _actually_ friends! I swear, it's the absolute truth," he said, holding up a hand as though swearing on a Bible.

This certainly surprised Alex. Though, this did seem to jive with something Sonic had told her. It was after she had asked him if Earth would be in danger from Robotnik's presence. In response, he had said, _"If you asked me that same question, like 5 years ago... I would have given you a very different answer_." That implied that once upon a time, Sonic did not see Robotnik as the dangerous villain he was now.

"He became something of a lab assistant for me," Robotnik continued. "However, one fateful day, we were attempting an experiment to find a way to get my family and I back to Earth. I needed Sonic's speed to create kinetic energy to power the experiment. But it was unstable! It was too much! I told Sonic to stop, but the little blue bastard kept running!"

The more Robotnik spoke of their history together, the more something tugged at Alex. This origin story of their friendship and Sonic's attempts to help Robotnik with an experiment using his super speed... It sounded very similar to the origin story in Sonic The Comic, first published by the UK company, Fleetway, in the early '90s. Her father had managed to get his hands on a few of those 'collectables' as well, back in his youth. The strange parallels between the real and the fictional were really blowing Alex's mind, but not as much as how Robotnik's story ended.

"The machine overloaded and exploded, taking my lab and the small house we lived in with it. Somehow, I survived... as did Sonic. But my family..." Robotnik's fists curled and clenched, shaking in anger. "They died in the blast! That damn hedgehog... _He's_ the one who took my family from me! When people don't listen to me, PEOPLE DIE! Roman didn't listen to me, Sonic blatantly ignored me, and my family paid the price! That's your hero!" he spat venomously. "A true force of highly destructive power that cares for nothing but himself! And I swear... One day I'll make Sonic suffer for the pain he's caused me."

Alex lowered her head. "I'm sorry," she said softly. "I'm so, so sorry. For you, and for your family. But..."

Slowly she raised her head. There were tears in her eyes as she gazed at him. Pity. He'd seen it once before when they'd spoken of his wife. Pity for him and his tragic loss. But her next words made her pity feel belittling, insulting.

"It was an accident," she said. "Just an accident. A terrible one. But an accident all the same. Sonic doesn't deserve your hatred _or_ your vengeance."

Robotnik felt the fury rising inside of him. "An... accident? You dare tell me that Sonic's selfish carelessness... the very attitude that killed my family... WAS AN ACCIDENT!?"

Alex recoiled against Sage as Robotnik shouted at her. His full fury was unleashed. A he raged at her, his glasses slipped down his nose and Alex saw his eyes for the first time; eyes which might have once been blue or green were crimson with flecks of vile yellow. It was as if his very gaze, in and of itself, was explosive. Was this another unfortunate side effect of his experiment, the one that killed his family?

"To HELL with your pitying tears, girl! Sonic WILL get every ounce of vengeful fury I can muster. And when I finally have him helplessly in my grasp... I will torture him... and then... I... WILL... CRUSH... HIM!!"

Alex's eyes blurred with tears, this time not out of pity for Robotnik, but fear for Sonic. And yet, perhaps it was those tears blurring out the vision of the raging megalomaniac that gave her the courage to say what she said next.

"You're a coward."

Robotnik was in the midst of a vicious rage unlike anything she had seen from him up to this point. Normally, he was cool and collected. Now, he was unhinged. Perhaps that was what made her words all the more foolish.

Robotnik clenched his fist and pulled back his hand to strike her across the face. Alex turned away with a frightened whimper, bracing for impact. But the blow never came.

"Master!!" exclaimed Sage.

It was the only thing which stayed his hand. Robotnik's hand stopped in mid descent. For a moment, he glared silently at Sage before drawing a slow, deep breath. His voice, low and dangerous asked, "And why, pray tell, am I a coward?"

For a moment, Alex almost didn't want to answer that question. She was frightened of him, and worried that her answer would only bring his wrath upon her to a point where even Sage couldn't stop him. But if she refused to answer him... what then? Possibly the same. Or worse. And so, frightened but determined, Alex turned her gaze back to him and blinked away her tears.

"You're a coward because when someone extends their hand in friendship, willing to help you, you turn them away and make them your enemy. You blame them for everything that goes wrong instead of taking responsibility for your own mistakes! You asked Sonic for help, and he gave it to you. But something went wrong, and you blame him entirely, when you _knew_ it was a risky experiment. So now, you seek vengeance upon him."

Robotnik's fiery gaze held fast to hers, but he remained silent, and so Alex continued.

"And now," she said, growing bolder with every word he allowed to escape her lips, "You would punish all of humanity for the actions of _one man_." She nodded in Roman's direction. "For _this_ poor excuse for a human being. That's hypocrisy. Just like what you're doing to me. You threatened my mother, kidnapped me, and you're planning to use me in an experiment which could possibly be just as dangerous as the one that sent you to Sonic's world, or even the one that killed your family. I'm not a tool, I'm a human being! And I have a hard time believing that angelic looking woman in the stasis pod would condone what you've become."

Robotnik's crimson glare remained on Alex's, his eyes becoming increasingly difficult to look at. It was obvious that he had been pushed beyond the point of tolerance. Alex held her breath, expecting a terrible backlash. But Robotnik seemed to have made the decision not to lose his cool again. And yet, his next words sent a chill down her spine.

"You're wrong about one thing, Miss Parker..." Slowly, he pushed his glasses back up his nose, concealing those wicked eyes once more. " _All_ humans... _are_ tools. And I will use them all as I see fit."

These words were, perhaps, far worse than any physical punishment he may have inflicted upon her, for it showed just how far gone the man Charles Boddick was, and just how truly evil and unscrupulous Dr. Robotnik was.

"STARK!"

At the sound of his master's call, the hulking android came forward, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Take her away. And this time... LOCK THE DAMN DOOR!"

Stark nodded. "Gladly, Master."

Sage released his hold on Alex as Stark yanked her off of her feet, threw her over his shoulder, and marched towards the door. Alex did not struggle. There was no point.

_Hopeless,_ she thought. And yet, all the same, that did not stop her from unleashing one last admonishment to her cruel captor.

"You're nothing but a bitter old man, Charles Boddick!" she shouted as Stark carried her out the door. "And that's all you'll ever be!"

Though his back was to the girl and the retreating android, Robotnik's fists were clenched and shaking with fury. That girl _dared_ to talk back to him in such a manner!? He'd had quite enough of that. There would be no more gentlemanly Robotnik behavior. Now, it was time to initiate the beginning stages of his plans.

Once the door had slid shut behind Stark, Robotnik addressed the remaining android. "Sage... I want you to find a way to bring the Chaos Energy in that girl to its peak and take a reading of the energy output."

Sage tilted his head inquisitively. "Of course, Master. Is there a particular way you wish me to carry this out?"

Robotnik waved his hand dismissively. "Hurt her... scare her... make her cry... ANYTHING! I don't care _how_ you do it, just bring me results!"

As Sage considered his options, a small, somewhat devious smile crossed his face.

"As you wish, Master..."


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forewarning: Something which I'd categorize as "unwanted attention" takes place in this chapter. Nothing too triggering, I believe. Nevertheless, reader's discretion is advised.

Alex had been gone all day and most of the evening. It was getting late. And Sonic was getting worried. He had tried to keep himself occupied after returning from Alex's swim meet. Comics, video games, cartoons, even the best of Earth's music was at his disposal... anything he could find around her apartment to keep himself busy. But it wasn't working. The later it got, the more worried he became. There was _no way_ she could be having _that_ good a time with that Patrick Miller kid. She should've been home by now.

"That's it! I gotta find her! I gotta make sure she's okay."

It was after dark, and Sonic was able to move through the night without being spotted far easier than he would during the day. Donning Liam's clothes once more, Sonic slipped out of the apartment and into the night. He searched all the different places he could think of to try and find her. The bus stop... nothing. The gym... nothing. The cafe... nothing. So, Sonic determined that he had to search even further. The next stop on his search... her aunt's house.

When Sonic arrived at the house, he carefully peeked into each of the windows, hoping to see if he could spot Alex, without being spotted himself. The second window he peeked into was the room where Alex had procured the device called a Nintendo Switch for him to play the day they traveled to Centurion Technologies.

There was a young boy inside, reclined in bed in front of the television. He looked about 12 years old with shaggy blonde hair that kept falling in his face, no matter how many times he pushed it away from his forehead. This must be Alex's cousin, Liam. He had a controller in hand, and on the TV screen in front of him was a high-definition 3D Sonic game, which, as far as Sonic could tell, was a game called Sonic Forces. Eggman was onscreen, dangling a buzz-saw wrecking ball from his hovercraft while Liam was controlling a small Sonic on the screen.

"Mwa-haha!" Eggman laughed. "To surpass expectations is the ultimate of genius! I wouldn't expect you to understand."

The tiny Sonic proceeded to spin-dash onto Eggman's head until the villain summoned a much larger and far more imposing mecha, something the title screen referred to as the 'Egg Dragoon,' and settled into the cockpit. Liam controlled the small Sonic, making him run back and forth while the machine shot at him. Meanwhile, the counterattack was to spin-dash giant boulders into the cockpit of the machine.

"Come on!" shouted Liam. "Die, already, you fat fuck!"

Sonic snorted as he stifled a laugh.

"LIAM!"

Sonic quickly ducked below the level of the window. Then, carefully, he peeked over the sill just slightly. That voice belonged to his mother, Alex's Aunt Dena. Her blonde hair was done up and she wore a nice black dress. She poked her head into Liam's room as she put a pair of onyx earrings in her ears.

"What?" snapped Liam.

"You watch your language, young man. I don't want to have to take your PlayStation away from you again."

Liam rolled his eyes and made a disgusted sound in the back of his throat. "It's a Nintendo Switch, Mom."

"Whatever."

Her boyfriend, Eric, appeared behind her, wearing the same camo pants and ball cap he'd worn the first time Sonic had seen him.

"You seriously goin' out tonight?" he grumbled at Dena.

"I have to. Theresa is having a bachelorette party. I said I'd be there."

"But this is, like, her second marriage."

Dena narrowed her eyes at him. "So?"

"So... well, you know..." Whatever else he said trailed off into a mumble. "Anyway, you sure you don't wanna, uh, call your niece to watch the kid?"

"Why?" asked Dena. " _You're_ here."

"I don't need watching!" snapped Liam.

"See?" said Dena with a shrug. She left the room, leaving Eric standing in the doorway glaring at Liam.

"You should call your cousin," he said.

"Like hell. I don't need a babysitter."

Eric opened his mouth to reply, but Liam cursed again. "Damn it! Look what you did! You made me lose! And I only had one more hit!" He picked up a pillow and threw it at Eric, who dodged by slamming the door to Liam's room.

Sonic had taken in far more of Alex's relatives than he intended to. After witnessing the fiasco that was... _these people_... he rolled his eyes and dropped down from the window. At least this was one place Sonic could mark off his list. Alex certainly wasn't here. There was only one last place he could think to check.

"She wouldn't have gone there, though... would she?"

Sonic ran all the way to the lakefront at the edge of North Lake City and to the property of Edgar Roman of Centurion Technologies. The place was blocked off with police tape, allowing no one to trespass onto the property. It looked absolutely deserted. No, Alex wouldn't want to come here. Not after everything that happened.

Sonic sighed. He didn't know of any other places where Alex might be. He didn't even know where she worked, or else he'd check there. Perhaps she _was_ still out with Patrick. Maybe she was just really enjoying herself. Maybe... she just didn't need him.

Sonic's shoulders slumped as he drew in a deep breath. He supposed it would be best if he just went home. After all, she'd be home sooner or later... right?

With that, Sonic shot back to Alex's apartment, wondering just when he'd started thinking of it as 'home.' And even though he was moving at insane speeds, to Sonic, it felt like a hell of a long trip back.

***

Sonic had no idea just how close he'd come to where Alex was being kept. If he'd only known he was just a mile or two away from Robotnik's hidden base in the middle of the lake...

Meanwhile, in the bowels of said base, Alex was lying on the small efficiency-style bed in the prison room granted to her. Hours had passed since the dinner fiasco, and she was still cursing herself for losing her temper and flipping out on Robotnik, especially now that her stomach was grumbling something fierce. She'd eaten so little today, and she was starving.

There was, it seemed, an intercom inside her room which she could use to contact, presumably, Robotnik or his android servants if she needed anything. But she didn't dare be so presumptuous as to request room service after her earlier behavior.

_Pissing off Dr. Robotnik was a great idea, Alex,_ she chastised herself. _I'm starting to think you have no sense of self-preservation._

She had already tried the door once since she was returned, but this time Stark had not forgotten to lock it. She was truly, utterly trapped.

Although she would not have thought it possible to sleep under such grim circumstances, for the next several hours, Alex nonetheless drifted in and out of a light doze, for the events of the day had taken their toll on her. She was also feeling the beginnings of an oncoming cold, and a nasty one, too.

_Serves me right for leaping into the lake in this weather,_ she thought glumly.

It also didn't help that the room didn't exactly come equipped with any blankets. And so, she lay curled up on her side, shivering as she slept. When the door slid open, she didn't even stir. It wasn't until she felt the looming presence of a figure standing over her that Alex opened her eyes.

Sage was standing at her bedside, gazing down at her. Alex sat up with a gasp. How long had he been standing there? She wasn't sure what she expected from him, but it wasn't what came. A small smile appeared on his face as he held out his hands to her.

"Tea?"

Sure enough, he held a mug of hot tea in his hands, which he offered to her.

At first, Alex eyed it warily. Might he have put something in it? _Come on, Alex. It's not like it's poisoned. Robotnik needs you alive, remember?_

Well, thank God for small miracles. And tea... tea sounded really nice about now. Perhaps it would serve to ward off the chest cold she suspected she was getting, maybe even curb her appetite. Slowly, Alex reached out and accepted the mug.

"Thanks," she said.

The hot mug felt good against her hands. She held it up to her nose and breathed it in. Oh, it was heavenly! She wondered if Robotnik had arranged this or if the android had taken it upon himself to make this generous offering. They did seem rather autonomous... or at least Sage did. Stark, though he did have _something_ of a personality, however dull and awful, seemed only to do things when specifically ordered to.

"I'm glad it was you and not your brother," she told Sage as she brought her lips to the mug and blew lightly over the hot liquid. "Um, I mean, you know... the other one." She took a sip. It was good! The perfect mix of honey and lemon.

"Brother..." said Sage slowly, as though trying on the word for the first time, "...isn't an inaccurate term. After all, we were built and activated at the same time. So, 'brother' is fairly apt."

Alex had corrected herself mostly due to the fact that she'd come to realize that Sage and Stark were the android recreations of the sons Robotnik once had, but ultimately, as Robotnik had said, utter failures in capturing the true life essence of his former progeny. But it would seem her real meaning went over Sage's head. Perhaps they didn't realize the true reason they'd been created.

"I must apologize for him," Sage continued. "He can be rather... crass... and somewhat exhausting at times."

Alex snorted derisively. " _That's_ an understatement," she said taking another sip of tea. "He's incompetent _and_ violent. That's a dangerous cocktail. I don't see why it's _him_ and not _you_ that Robotnik has babysit me, especially if he wants me unharmed."

"It is the Master's will," Sage said simply.

Alex went to take another sip of tea, then hesitated, considering her statement. While Sage's calm and stoic disposition was preferable to Stark's violent and adversarial personality, Sage wasn't entirely unintimidating, particularly with his creeper-like tendencies he'd displayed during dinner. Once more, Alex eyed him warily.

"What's _your_ problem, though? You've, like, never seen another human before or something, right?" Perhaps that explained those creeper-like quirks.

Sage considered his response for a moment, then nodded. "Before coming to Earth, I had never seen another human besides the Doctor. But I do find myself quite fascinated by them." Sage tilted his head, gazing down at Alex from where he stood. "I have been studying humans via the Doctor's personal database and through infiltrating what you call 'the internet.' It is truly a fascinating study. I have found many particular things of interest when it comes to humans."

Alex grew wary once more as he approached the bed, wearing a smile that was a little too flirtatious for an android. When he took a seat beside her, Alex scooted away just a bit, never taking her eyes away from him.

"In fact," he continued. "Since coming here, I've discovered that there's something I like very much about humans."

"Their autonomy and free will?" she asked shakily.

Sage grinned. "Well, those do lead to humans making some very entertaining decisions. But what I really like about humans..."

He leaned closer and, at first, Alex recoiled. But something in his eyes held her gaze, some subliminal color-changing flicker. For a moment, she was entranced, as though she could learn something if she just gazed into his eyes long enough. Thusly distracted, Alex never noticed his hand rising up to make contact with her cheek until it was too late.

"...is how easily they can be made pliable to a superior being's whims."

He caressed her cheek and a warm tingling sensation emanated from his fingertips. It coursed through her skin, her nerves, and muscles, lulling her into something of a daze, though a much lighter one than what he'd done in the car.

With a gasp, Alex's teacup slipped from her grasp and fell to the floor, as though she possessed no strength with which to hold it any longer. Her eyes grew wide.

"Nnn... Wh-What are you d-doing to me? S-Stop..."

She felt fuzzy headed; disoriented. Not only did she suddenly have no strength, but everything was taking on an almost foggy, dream-like quality. But she was definitely still awake. And it would appear this was just what Sage wanted.

"Ease, Alexandra... Ease..." Her first name. Had he ever addressed her by her first name before? And why did it sound so good coming out of his mouth?

Alex was weak and disoriented. And, naturally, that frightened her. But at those words, spoken oh so soothingly from the lips of this powerful android – so powerful he might almost be a being of supernatural abilities – Alex was helpless but to do exactly as he said. Though every fiber of her being screamed out in protest, her body simply relaxed, as though she were being turned to clay, pliable to his words, hands, and whims.

"You see," he said continuing to caress her cheek, "Dr. Robotnik has given me the title of 'Infiltrator,' which is why I accompany him when he goes out into public... _and_ why I consume many elements of human nature. When I watched you at your swim meet, it triggered something in me, Alexandra. A feeling, a desire."

Alex's heart began to beat faster. For a moment, she felt as though the world was spinning and she couldn't catch her breath.

Sage took a lock of her hair between his fingers and brought it to his lips as though enjoying the tactile sensation. "Perhaps I am malfunctioning... or perhaps I have simply surpassed my Master's expectations. I want to test that, to test my capabilities and limits as an android; as a humanoid. And... I want _you_ to help me with that."

"H-Help you?" Alex stammered. It was all she could manage to get out.

Sage released her hair and his hands moved to her waist. "My master has tasked me with bringing the Chaos Energy in you to its peak and taking a reading of the output. I figure, I can achieve his goal _and_ mine at the same time. And that's why I've decided that instead of simply frightening you, plunging you into despair, or threatening to hurt you, I wanted a much more... intriguing... experience to make that energy spike. Thus..."

Sage allowed his actions to speak for themselves as he buried his lips against the side of her neck. As he made contact, a sort of zing went through Alex and she gasped, her body giving a sudden, hot shudder. She brought her hands to his chest to push him away, but they merely settled lightly upon him. It was as though all the strength had gone out of her. All Alex could do was close her eyes and let out a whimpering groan of protest.

_No! Help! Someone help me!_

Sage's lips continued to leave a trail of tingling sensation in their wake. What was that? Electricity? A vibration? How? How could an android do all this? And _why_?

His hands gradually trailed up her sides. Finding the zipper of her athletic jacket, he slowly, almost tauntingly slowly, began to unzip it. He then began to slide her jacket off of her shoulders, baring more of her smooth skin.

Alex trembled. "N-No... P-Please..."

Her hands tightened into fists over his chest. She wanted to pound them against him, but she couldn't. Whatever he'd done to her, he'd somehow stunted her nervous system and made her as weak as a doll. A living doll, who was his to do with as he chose.

Sage continued to slide her jacket down to just the middle of her back. She was exposed just enough for him to have her as he wished, but in this manner, her arms were pinioned to where she couldn't move them. Sage leaned into her more and more until he had pushed her down onto the bed. Alex whimpered. Was this seriously happening? No way! It couldn't be! But here she was, and here he was, hovering over top of her.

Alex's wide brown eyes were fixed upon Sage. She watched as he pulled out his ponytail, letting his long auburn hair fall down around his face. Alex swallowed. She couldn't help but find him appealing. Was this how Robotnik's son had looked when he was alive?

_Must've gotten his looks from his mother,_ she mused.

She almost snorted at the absurdity of it all.

Sage tilted his head. "My sensors indicate an increase in dopamine and heightened levels of nitrogen oxide, indicating that you... How do they put it? Ah, yes. You like what you see." He grinned impishly, a rare expression indeed for this android. "The feeling is mutual, Alexandra." With that, he hooked his thumbs under the straps of her bathing suit and slowly began to slide them down her shoulders.

"N-No!" Alex tried to stop him, but her arms were trapped and he was too powerful.

Sage pressed his lips tenderly along her clavicle and Alex cried out as she ran through a series of flickers. That was quite the energy spike. Sage could feel it. It was a good start, but hardly close to what Robotnik wanted. He needed to up the ante to get that spike higher. And luckily, there was no concern of the girl pulling one of her disappearing acts here. This facility wouldn't allow it.

The android's lips moved to her ear as he whispered, "I so enjoyed watching you at your swim meet, Alexandra. I was really looking forward to meeting you up close and personal. And now... it seems I'm getting that chance."

He nibbled her ear and Alex squirmed uselessly beneath him. He wouldn't stop! _Why_ wouldn't he stop? How was he even capable of this? What sort of program was he running on? And why, oh why did his lips feel so... so real?!

Sage brought his face back to hers, gazing deeply into her eyes. His expression was one of mischievous intent. "You... are... exquisite," he said. His hands returned to the straps of her suit and began to slide them down further as his lips hovered over her own.

"NO!"

Alex struggled against him, but it was no use. With her jacket halfway down her back, it acted as a trap for her arms, which were pinned on the bed at her sides. She couldn't move. She tried to buck him off of her, but all she could do was bend and flex her legs uselessly beneath his weight. She closed her eyes and clenched her teeth as she flickered several more times. And this time, the spike was higher.

"Nnnn... N-No..."

His lips were drawing closer and her straps were descending lower when red lights began to flash and an alarm sounded throughout the facility.

Sage paused in his actions, his brow furrowing into an irritated expression. "A security breach? Now? _Why now?_ "

He glared up at the lights and the siren before turning his gaze back to Alex. His fingers trailed along her cheek once more as his lips hovered briefly over hers.

"I guess that's all the time we have for now. It seems I have some work to do. A terrible shame..."

And with that, he withdrew, the door sliding shut and locking behind him. Just like that, Alex was alone once more. It was over. And luckily, it didn't end up going too far. That security breach had happened in the nick of time. Alex wondered... What exactly _was_ the security breach? Best she could figure, either someone had busted in... or someone had busted out.

_Shame it isn't me,_ thought Alex. But at the very least, it spared her from Sage's unwanted attentions. Alex allowed herself to feel some relief at this, but sooner or later, she knew he'd be back, and then...

Alex curled onto her side and began to cry. Why did it seem that just when she thought things couldn't get any worse, they got way, _way_ worse? Was it too much to hope that the security breach meant that Sonic had come to rescue her?

_Yes... Yes, it is too much to hope,_ said a little voice inside. _Sonic has no idea where you are._ No one _knows where you are._

Hugging herself, Alex cried harder, the sound of which would reach the perked ears of another... the very one for whom the sirens rang.

***

Alex didn't know what was going on outside her room. The flashing lights and sirens continued to blare with no sign of ever stopping. Perhaps they hadn't yet found the intruder... or whatever it was. After some time, she heard a strange tapping on the metal ceiling above her. Rolling onto her back, she gazed up at the ceiling, her brow furrowed.

_What was that?_

There it was again! Someone... or something... was up there. It sounded suspiciously like someone was crawling through an air duct.

Slowly, Alex sat up. Though still frightened, she scooted back into the corner where the bed met the wall, bringing her knees to her chest and hugging them as she gazed at the ceiling and called out tentatively.

"H-Hello? Is... Is someone up there? If you can hear me and you're not, um, dangerous... c-could you please h-help me?"

At her call, the tapping sound stopped and Alex held her breath. For a moment, nothing happened. There was no sound. Had she just been hearing things after all? Perhaps she was fooling herself to truly believe that someone who might actually help her was hiding in the air ducts. But after a moment, she heard a bang, then another bang, and then a metal panel in the ceiling broke loose and clattered to the floor.

Immediately after, a figure dropped down from the ceiling, landing lithely upon the floor. Even with its back to her, perhaps even more so with its back to her, it was a figure that Alex recognized immediately. Those pointy ears, that yellow-orange fur, and those two fluffy tails swaying from side to side...

Yes. It was him!

The two-tailed fox glanced about before turning around, putting those bright blue eyes on Alex.

"Oh! Hello! Are you being held prisoner here, as well?"

The young fox boy tilted his head. For a moment, the human girl just sat there, hugging her knees to her chest and gaping at him. It looked like she'd been crying. Yep, definitely a prisoner. But why was she staring at him like that? Why wouldn't she say something?

Then, suddenly, she laughed. It was a sound of pure, unadulterated, giddy relief if he'd ever heard any. Laughing through her tears she proclaimed, "T-Tails! You're... You're Tails!"


	18. Chapter 18

"T-Tails! You're... You're Tails!"

She said it as though it were almost an unbelievable thing. And yet... how did she know his name?

"Yes. I'm Tails... Tails Prower. Have we met before? I feel like I would remember if I've met a human before. I mean, besides Dr. Robotnik of course..."

"N-No. But I know you. I..."

Alex trailed off. That was far too much to explain right now. It was neither the time nor the place. So, she settled for something simple.

"I'm a friend of Sonic's. And I'm..." The waterworks started and she began to bawl hysterically. "And I'm _so_ glad to see you!"

Suddenly, she was up off the bed, throwing her arms around him and giving him perhaps the tightest hug anyone had ever given him.

Tails' eyes widened and a pinkish tint lit his furry cheeks. "O-Oh... Uh... Heh... Well..."

He was so soft and fluffy! He felt just like a life-size version of her old Tails plushie. It had once been her father's, and she had loved cuddling with it. But sometime after her father passed, it got lost in the shuffle when Aunt Dena had been going through his old things, and what to sell and what to keep. Alex hadn't saved it in time. Who knew where it was now?

Realizing that this was a living creature and not a stuffed animal, Alex quickly released him, stammering out a hasty apology. "S-Sorry. I just..." She wiped at her eyes. "Oh man... You're gonna save me, right? We can escape, right?"

"Well, if you're an unwitting prisoner of Robotnik's, then I can't just leave you here." He looked around the room for a moment before glancing down at a small computer-like device he held in his hands. "Hey, have you seen a glowing, brilliant cut gemstone around here? My detector says that there's one in this room but I don't see it."

"Uh... th-that would be me," said Alex, rubbing the back of her neck.

"Huh? _You???_ "

"Long story."

Tails checked his device again. "According to my readings, there's a very high concentration of Chaos Energy. And you're right... it _is_ coming from you! But you don't seem to have a Chaos Emerald on you. Where would you possibly be hiding it?"

"Well..."

"Doesn't matter. We can talk about that later. We should concentrate on getting out of here."

Alex agreed. With the flashing lights and the sirens, it was only a matter of time before they found Tails. Then their chance at escape would be blown.

"We'll have to get to the hanger bay. I'm certain that's where Robotnik is keeping my plane."

Alex's face lit up. "You mean the Tornado?" She couldn't help geeking out a little. "It's here? That's great!"

For a moment, Tails gaped at her in silence, baffled that she knew the name of his plane. How strange. This girl sure did know quite a bit for someone he'd never met. Maybe Sonic filled her in. After all, she claimed she was his friend.

"So... how do we get there?" she asked.

Tails tapped on the screen of his device and a holographic projection of the Robo Dome rose up. Alex leaned closer, fascinated. Though, this time, she tried to keep her geeking out to a minimum.

"Well, if these schematics I copied from Robotnik's system are correct, we're currently in Holding Level Alpha. There are two air craft hangar bays just below the command level. I was going to try to find my way there through the air ducts, but I don't think we could _both_ do that. You're not going to fit in there." He blushed a little. "Uh... no offense."

"Yeah... I get it. No worries. Well, actually, I _am_ worried. I mean, what do we do? I can't get out of here. The door's locked. And besides, that would be, like, a lot of hallways and elevators and possible robots to get through, wouldn't it?" Alex chewed her lip and lowered her gaze. "Maybe I ought to just let you go and get Sonic and come back for me later. Though, I'm not sure any directions I give you to my apartment would make much sense." She took a deep shuddering breath and ran a hand through her hair as she leaned back against the bed. "I'm messing up your plan, aren't I?"

The poor girl looked like she was on the verge of tears again. Tails' eyes widened and he thrust his hands out, waving them at Alex as though to ward off a misunderstanding.

"N-No! No way! We can figure this out! I can't just leave behind someone in need." He thought for a moment before he snapped his fingers. "That's it! Hold on!"

With a twirl of his tails, he rose into the air. Alex watched him, jaw agape. Flying... he was really flying! She could hear the whup-whup-whup sounds his tails made as they beat the air like helicopter blades. She could even feel the wind rustle her hair. Once more, he disappeared into the air duct above.

Alex did her best to wait patiently, but she was getting antsy. No way Tails would abandon her. Besides, he said he wasn't leaving her behind. After a few moments, the door to her room slid open. Alex leapt to her feet, fearing Sage, Stark, or Robotnik. But to her relief, it was Tails, holding the wire attachment to the control panel outside the door, revealing just how he'd managed to open it.

"There we go! C'mon! Let's go!"

Alex grinned widely. "Brilliant!" she proclaimed as she ran to the doorway and ruffled his hair. She hoped he wouldn't take offense. She just couldn't help herself.

Tails beamed in the light of her compliment. "Heheh. Well, it wasn't much..." He retracted the wire to his device and lifted up into the air once more. "We'll have to be quick... and we'll have to be stealthy. With the alarms blaring, there could be Mechas around every corner!"

He waved for her to follow him and he took off down the corridor. He was a fast flier. Alex had to run to keep up. At the very least, thought Alex, all the alarms ought to mask the sounds of their escape. But then again, it was as Tails said; there could be Mechas around every corner. Alex tried not to shiver as she followed him down a corridor.

A door at the end of the hallway slid open and Tails dropped to his feet, ducking out of sight. Alex, who'd been running, almost passed him before she skidded to a halt and backtracked, ducking out of sight as well. She watched with wide eyes as armored Mechas, armed to the teeth, along with hovering Attack Pods, marched down the intersecting hallway.

_Oh God..._ thought Alex. _I'm going to die here._

Once they passed, Tails, peeked out from the door. The coast was clear. "Let's go," he said, motioning her forward. "We need to find an elevator."

"Oh! I know where one is," said Alex, remembering from her earlier explorations. "This way."

Reluctantly, she took the lead, trying to calm her fears by reminding herself that Robotnik did not want her dead. Though, she doubted Robotnik would extend the same courtesy to Tails. Already, she was working out in her head how she might plead for his life if they were caught. Perhaps the promise of cooperating in any way Robotnik wished without complaint. She wanted to gag just thinking about it.

Finally, they arrived at the elevator. The doors opened, permitting them entrance. Thankfully, there were no robots waiting inside. Alex and Tails entered, the doors closing behind them. Alex leaned against the back wall of the elevator and took a deep, shuddering breath.

"Would this be a good time to mention how terrified I am?"

Tails swallowed hard and glanced over his shoulder at her. "Heh. Well, if you'd like to, then I'm sure I can relate. I'm really scared, myself. I didn't even know that Robotnik had a massive facility like this. Getting captured and locked away in here was the first time I became aware of this dome of his."

Alex wasn't sure whether she felt reassured that Tails was scared, too, or whether it frightened her more. After all, _he_ was supposed to be the hero. Well, the hero's sidekick. But still! At the very least, he seemed to know what he was doing.

_Help me Miles Prower, you're my only hope,_ she thought with a dismal sort of humor.

Tails studied elevator controls. "Nothing can ever be straightforward with you, can it, Robotnik?" he mused. "It's always gotta be needlessly complicated..." He hooked his device up to the control panel and quickly began tapping his fingers against the screen. "...and yet super easy to crack!" He looked back at Alex with a smile. "I found it!"

Suddenly, the elevator began moving and Alex exchanged a smile with Tails. "Great. Let's just hope the doors don't open for anyone else to get on, huh?" She winced and brought a fist to her mouth and coughed loudly against it.

_Oh no..._

There was definitely a deep 'whoop' sound to that. A chest cold. Not good. Not good at all.

_Come on, immune system... at least hang in there until we're out of the doomsday fortress._

Tails blinked his wide blue eyes, gazing at her in concern. "A-Are you okay?"

Alex wouldn't get her chance to answer, however, for there was a 'bong' sound, indicating that the elevator was coming to a stop. Tails glanced at his device in a panic.

"What? There's no way we're there already!"

Alex saw the fur on his twin tails frizzing up on end as he got nervous. The elevator stopped and the doors opened. Standing before them was a Mecha with no apparent weaponry. Alex grasped Tails' hand. He could feel the fear in her grip as the robot scanned them with a wide, arcing laser light.

"You are not authorized to be joyriding in this elevator," it said matter-of-factly.

_Joyriding?_ thought Alex.

"Please return to your designated quarters."

_At least it's polite,_ she thought.

In fact, she was pretty certain this was the same Mecha she'd spoken with earlier. It hadn't been very helpful, nor had it fallen for her rather brazen claims, but neither had it harmed her. Nor had it seemed to inform anyone of her roaming around at the time. So maybe, if she was clever and didn't make claims that were _too_ outrageous, she might be able to reason with it; to trick it.

Alex cleared her throat. "Pardon me," she said, doing her best to sound both affronted and authoritative. "But I am the master's VIP guest, and Mr. Prower and I have been summoned for a meeting with Dr. Robotnik and Mr. Roman to discuss the master's plan for world domination. We're really quite busy, and if you are overstepping your designation, then Dr. Robotnik will have to disassemble you and fix the error in your programming. I'd advise you return to your duties and leave us to ours."

She held her breath as her grip on Tails' hand tightened while they awaited the Mecha's response. Tails glanced nervously between Alex and the Mecha as the machine took a moment to process what Alex had said, particularly the part about Robotnik disassembling it.

"Processing... This result is accurate. This unit shall seek advisement on the matter. Please, remain where you are."

With those words, the Mecha turned and walked off, apparently to find someone who could corroborate their story. Once it was off, the door closed and the elevator shot upwards once more. Breathing a sigh of relief, Alex released Tails' hand. He turned to Alex in surprise.

"Wow. You _must_ be Sonic's friend with that kind of fast-talk scheme."

Alex shook her head. "Honestly, that's a first for me. I'm discovering all kinds of new talents while in crisis mood. And that Mecha may have gone away, but you heard him... He's gonna tell somebody. So sooner or later something's gonna be on our tails." She glanced at Tails with a nervous smirk. "All three of them."

Tails stared at Alex as if he didn't know what she was talking about. Then it sank in. "Oh! R-Right. I get it!" But he was too nervous to laugh at her joke.

Alex leaned against the back wall of the elevator and braced herself. Her legs felt like jelly. "I don't know how much longer I can do this. I'm seriously freaking out. I really pissed him off earlier – Robotnik, that is. I don't know what he'll do. And Sage..." She hesitated and shook her head. "I don't want to deal with him again," she said with a shiver.

"Robotnik's androids _are_ really intimidating. They don't mess around. Especially Stark. He's like a walking tank!"

Alex nodded. He was, she supposed, the scarier of the two, but Sage... She shivered again. What was with that android? Her skin still broke out in goose flesh when she thought about what he'd tried to do to her. And yet...

"By the way, I don't think we were properly introduced. You know who I am. But who are you?"

"Oh! Right! Sorry. It's just that so much has been happening so fast."

She stuck out her hand to shake his formally, though she'd already had a death grip on it once or twice.

"My name's Alexandra Parker. I just go by Alex, though. It's... well, it's super awesome to meet you! Like, probably the second coolest thing that's happened to me. That is..." She chewed her lip as her eyes darted nervously about the elevator, as though waiting for some Mecha or drone to drop in on them. "... if we weren't _here_. And furthermore... Welcome to Earth. Which, hopefully, you'll see more of soon, provided we can really escape."

"So, we _are_ on a different world! I knew it! That bright light _was_ Chaos Control. Robotnik really pulled it off!"

So, it would appear that Tails had already hypothesized as much. He certainly took that in stride. Undoubtedly, he'd seen many strange and unusual sights on his many adventures with Sonic. However, Alex was pretty sure he'd be a little more blown away when she told him of how he and Sonic were pop culture icons on this world. But that was best saved for another time.

Tails studied the indicator on the elevator's controls as he considered Alex's fears that they might not escape from this. She wasn't alone. He had his own concerns on the matter as well. If the elevator doors opened upon more Mechas, particularly Assault Mechas, they'd find themselves in a good deal of trouble.

Once more, Tails brought up the holographic schematic of Robotnik's complex, pulling up the particular elevator they were riding. He zoomed in to the elevator shaft at the hangar bay.

"It doesn't end there."

"Huh? What doesn't end where?"

"The elevator. It doesn't end at the hangar bay."

"But what does that mean?" asked Alex.

"It means I have an idea."

Tails turned off his device and flew to the ceiling of the elevator. The back of his little computer-like device had a compartment in which he kept small tools, one of which was a screwdriver. Tails quickly set to work opening a hatch in the ceiling of the elevator.

"Uh... What are you doing?"

Tails used his screwdriver to unlock the bolts that held the hatch shut. "I'm thinking that we hide on top of the elevator. That way, if the door opens and there are any Mechas looking to capture us, they won't spot us. They'll poke around and find no one in the elevator, and leave. Then, we wait until they've left and we slip into the hangar undetected."

"R-Ride the _top_ of the elevator... while it's still _moving_?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, I thought that was pretty obvious."

Clearly, this girl had never been on much of an adventure before. This must be her first time experiencing real danger. Had this girl seriously never gotten kidnapped before? There was a first time for everything, Tails supposed.

He unscrewed the final bolt and the hatch popped loose. As he pushed it open, Alex could see a dark, metallic elevator shaft which continued upwards. Tails put his screwdriver away and tossed his device up onto the roof of the elevator car. Then, he turned around and reached his hands down to Alex.

"Going up?" he asked with a smile.

"I guess I have to," she sighed. "Though I will seriously be impressed if your spinal cord doesn't snap if you try to lift me."

Tails grinned sheepishly. "Well, I suppose that might be an issue. But I think I might be able to get you up... at least high enough to grab the ledge.

"Are you sure?"

"We have to try! Jump and I'll catch you, okay?"

"O-Okay. Between my momentum and your hovering, maybe I can get up there without hurting you too much." Alex took a deep breath, trying to think 'light.' "Here it goes." She reached up and placed her hands in his. "Ready when you are."

Tails nodded.

Alex bounced on the balls of her feet, readying herself for a solid jump.

"One... two... THREE!"

She leapt and Tails caught her wrists. Gritting his teeth, he mustered his strength, whirling his tails faster to avoid being yanked back into the elevator. He managed to tug Alex to the edge of the hatch and she hauled herself up the rest of the way.

Tails plopped into a sitting position. "Phew... That's gonna smart later, I think."

"Good thing I'm a swimmer," Alex grunted. "I've got some solid arm—" The rest of her sentence ended in a hacking cough.

"Alex! Are you okay?"

"I-I'm fine," she said, resting on her hands and knees on top of the elevator. "It's just a little cold, I think. Let me know when we reach the hangar. I don't want to look up until we've stopped."

Tails gazed at her with concern a moment longer before studying the holographic schematic on his device. "We should almost be there. Another few floors."

He reached down through the hatch and pulled the cover shut, hiding their entry. They rode atop the elevator until it came to a complete stop. The tell-tale bong sounded, signaling that the elevator doors had opened below them.

Alex held her breath.

The marching of metallic feet told her there were Mechas checking the elevator. These Mechas must be a more formidable sort than their little friend from earlier, for they had deeper, more imposing voices; ones that almost reminded Alex of the SWATBots from SatAM.

"The prisoners are not aboard this elevator."

Alex's heart began to race. She could feel a cough coming on and covered her mouth with both hands and closed her eyes, trying her best to stifle it. Somehow, she managed to swallow it down, and not a moment too soon, for she heard another familiar voice. One belonging to someone she most definitely didn't want to meet again.

Stark.

"Musta got off on another floor or somethin! Slippery little runts! We keep searching... and _no one_ tell the Master until they're found, got it?"

"Negative. This _should_ be reported to Dr. Robotnik."

Tails and Alex exchanged frightened glances as they heard the sound of metal being smashed and torn asunder and the crackling of live wires. Tails gulped nervously.

"Anyone else?" said Stark. "No? Good! Now let's go!"

Alex gave Tails a wide-eyed look until the voices and footsteps receded. Slowly, she let out the breath she'd been holding.

"D-Did you h-hear that? Stark... He, like, ripped a SWATbot apart or something! Oh God, Tails... Please tell me the Tornado is close by. Otherwise I'm either going to puke or have a heart attack. Maybe both, and not necessarily in that order."

Tails took a deep, shuddering breath. "I think... it should definitely be in that hangar. We just need slip down the hatch and..."

But before Tails could finish, they heard the elevator doors opening once more and the sound of more Mechas entering. Tails' eyes grew wide.

"Uh oh."

With another 'bong' the elevator lurched downwards. Tails shot into the air with the help of his twin tails, but Alex, helpless, was starting to descend.

"Alex! The ledge! Hurry!"

The closed sliding door that led to the hangar bay had a narrow ledge. If she was quick enough, she might be able to hop onto it before the elevator plummeted down.

In her panic, Alex could do naught but obey. She scrambled to her feet somewhat clumsily, and ran for the ledge. She jumped and managed to hop onto it, and in her bare feet no less! But her momentum set her off balance and she began to windmill, crying out as she tilted helplessly backwards towards the shaft.

"Alex!"

Quickly, Tails flew to her and pressed against her back, giving her a push forward to set her upright on the narrow ledge. He held her there a moment longer to make sure she had her footing.

"Are you okay, Alex? I was almost afraid that you were going to miss that jump!"

Alex could barely speak. She nodded in response, but she was trembling and crying. She was obviously very frightened. And for good reason.

"I know its narrow, but try to put all your weight toward your front. I'm gonna try and see if I can find the manual override to the door. Okay?"

"O-O-Okay..." said Alex, leaning forward against the closed doors as best she could. With her arms and hands and cheek pressed against the doors, she closed her eyes and tried to remain steady and not think about where she was and what would happen if she fell.

Tails hesitated, really wanting to ensure that she wouldn't fall off. Once satisfied that she was well balanced, he flew away from her to hover beside the door frame, searching for a release mechanism for the doors.

He was serenaded by Alex's whimpers as he searched for the manual override. The sorry sound made him all the more determined to do what he could to get her out of this mess, and to get them _both_ out of the Robo Dome. It wasn't much longer before he found the compartment which housed the manual override lever.

"Here it is! This'll take just a moment longer. Hold on!"

Tails rubbed his hands together and took a hold of the lever. Unfortunately, it gave quite a bit of resistance. Maybe _too_ much.

"NNggh! It's... refusing... to budge...!"

Still keeping her eyes tightly shut and her body pressed against the doors, Alex pleaded with him. "Hurry... Oh, please hurry!"

Tails was trying and trying, doing his best to get the lever to move. But it was a hell of a struggle. "NNGH!! Stupid lever! Start... moving!" He felt it starting to give just a bit. But still not enough. He wondered if even Robotnik could pull this lever if he had to. Perhaps it was only for maintenance Mechas to pull. But he had to keep trying... for Alex's sake.

And then, with the most unfortunate timing in the most unfortunate of places, Alex was seized by a terrible coughing fit, one that she couldn't suppress.

Tails' eyes went wide as he watched her convulse from the coughs before one particularly violent one sent her careening backward.

"ALEX! WHOA!!"

At that very moment, the lever finally gave way, and Tails launched himself downwards. The doors slid open just as Alex's feet left the ledge. Summoning what strength and speed he could muster from whatever higher power normally granted them to Sonic, Tails hooked his arms beneath Alex's. Spinning his twin tails at top speed, he pushed her through the open doors and they both went sprawling across the cold metal floor of the hangar bay.

Alex landed hard, but that didn't matter. She was alive! She had been so certain that she was going to fall to her doom, but thanks to Tails, she was alive.

Tails lay beside her on the cold floor, panting heavily from exertion. "Alex... Are you alright, Alex?"

Alex turned her head towards him and managed a weak smile. "Y-Yes... I'm okay. You saved my life. If I wasn't getting sick, I'd kiss you." Wincing, she struggled to her feet and extended a hand, helping him to his. "Let's get out of here. I wanna go home."

"Yeah. I've had about all I can take from this place. Whoa!" Tails had just caught sight of the smashed Assault Mecha whose pieces scattered the floor where Stark had tossed it. "Oh boy... I don't wanna be on the receiving end of Stark's anger any time soon."

They glanced around the hangar. There was a plethora of different vehicles for use by either Robotnik or his Mechas. Alex felt as though she were aboard an aircraft carrier from the future. She'd never seen anything like these vehicles, at least not in real life. They looked as though they'd be more at home in a science fiction film.

"The Tornado!" exclaimed Tails. "There she is!"

Alex followed his gaze. There at the far end of the hangar was the legendary Tornado – Tails' biplane. "Yes!" said Alex. "That's one beautiful plane!"

In fact, Alex, who'd never been much for flying and had only been on a plane maybe once in her entire life, was nonetheless overjoyed to see it. After glancing around to make sure there were no Mechas around to stop them, Tails ran in the direction of his plane, Alex at his heels. But upon reaching the plane, he hesitated.

"It's just occurred to me. Sonic usually wing walks. And the seats aren't really made for... well, people of a human size. It might be a tight fit."

Alex shook her head. "Well, there's no way in _hell_ I'm standing on top of the wings of that plane. There's gotta be _some_ way for us both to fit. Heck, even if you have to sit in my lap. I don't care! I just wanna get out of here!"

"Fair enough," Tails replied, but still he hesitated, his gaze sweeping the hangar. "We've got another problem, though. We need to open the hangar bay doors, or else we'll never get out of here!"

Alex glanced from the plane to the hangar bay doors. It was a bit of a distance. "So how do we open them? And how long will that take? And how long does it take to get the plane to, you know, rev up?"

Tails glanced around the hanger, taking in his surroundings and gradually piecing together what needed to be done in order to escape. He spotted a staircase that led to an upper level where a long window overlooked the hangar.

"Alex, up there!" he said, pointing to what he suspected was some sort of control booth for the hangar. "That's where we'd have to go to open the hangar doors. You get the Tornado started and I'll see if I can get the hangar doors open! Hurry!"

"What? M-Me? Start the... _How?_ "

But Tails was already on his way to the control room.

"TAILS!" she shouted after him.

_Shit. That was stupid. Why'd I shout his name? That's bound to get_ someone's _attention. I'd better do as he says before it's too late._

And indeed, Alex had a feeling that time was of the essence. But how the hell was she supposed to start the Tornado? Perhaps it would become clear once she actually got into the cockpit. Alex quickly climbed onto the lower wing and hoisted herself into the admittedly small cockpit. It was a bit of a squeeze, but she just managed to fit. Looking at the control panel for the Tornado, Alex really couldn't make much sense of it.

"Shit, shit, shit. How do I do this?"

When Tails arrived at the control room, he discovered several computer consoles. This must be the hangar's master system. It was almost overwhelming just how many consoles there were.

"Whoa! Which one could possibly be the door controls?"

As Tails searched the control room for a way to open the hangar bay doors, another door off to the side opened and a squad of Assault Mechas marched into the hangar. They approached the plane, weapons at the ready.

"Halt!" ordered a voice in that SWATbotty tone. "You are under arrest!"

Alex gasped. They were pointing blasters at her! Shit! What if they really shot at her? But, surely, they wouldn't, right? Surely Robotnik had them on strict orders not to kill her. But then again, if Robotnik was never told, and if they were acting on Stark's command...

"Oh God... T-TAILS! WE'VE GOT COMPANY!"

Tails never heard Alex's cries as the security alarm blared at that very same moment.

Alex desperately searched the control panel, trying to make sense of it. _Come on, come on... I've gotta start this thing up quick! We've gotta get out of here! Oh! This button looks important. Maybe it's this._

Alex pressed a large button on the control panel and a missile shot out of the plane into the approaching Mechas, blowing them into the air and sending bolts and scrap metal flying. Alex ducked to avoid being hit by debris. The explosion rocked the hangar and Tails topped over, giving his head a shake.

"WHOA! W-WHAT?"

"S-Shit! S-Sorry! I'm sorry!" Alex cried, not really knowing why she was apologizing as she searched for the correct button.

Tails ran to the window which overlooked the hangar bay. "W-what was that!? What happened!?" He spotted the pile of metal debris which had once been Mechas, scattered about in front of the Tornado.

"Oh..." His eyes moved to Alex as he pointed at the mess of robot parts. "That was you?" He grinned nervously. "Heh. That's great! Only... I'm sure everyone woulda heard that!"

"I-It was an accident," she stammered. "Really!"

"Don't worry, Alex. I think you might have helped us in more ways than one." Tails flew down to the wreckage and grabbed a Mecha arm that was no longer attached to its owner.

Alex closed her eyes. _Obi-Wan Kenobi, guide my hand,_ she thought uselessly, and then slammed her palm onto the control panel. Alex wasn't sure what button she pressed, but when she next opened her eyes, the propeller was spinning.

"Y-Yes! I-I did it! TAILS, I DID IT!"

"That's great, Alex! I found the controls! It just needs a security clearance." He flew back up to the control room with the disembodied Mecha arm, apparently the very thing he needed to access the controls to the hangar doors.

"Hurry, okay?" Alex called after him. "The plane's starting to move and I don't know how to control it!"

Sure enough, the plane was on a slow, forward trajectory towards the closed hangar doors. As this was happening, a very familiar, very unwelcome voice shouted over a blaring intercom.

"ALL MECHA UNITS! ALL MECHA UNITS! HANGAR BAY BETA!"

Robotnik.

_Shit. He's onto us,_ thought Alex. _Robotnik's sending his Mecha units in here and I'm in the cockpit of a moving plane... and I don't know anything about planes! In fact, I_ hate _planes! Oh, please, please, hurry, Tails!_

At the sound of Robotnik's voice, Tails yiped and pressed the palm of the Mecha's hand against the touch-screen scanner, granting him access to the hangar bay controls.

"Yes!!" He quickly got to work activating the doors, which slowly began to slide open. With a smile, Tails flew out of the control room to the already moving plane. He saw Alex wedged into the seat and had to squeeze in with her, practically sitting in her lap.

"I'm sorry! I-I don't mean to get so close..."

"Don't apologize," said Alex, wrapping her arms around his waist and clinging fearfully to him. Right now, he was the closest thing she had to a security blanket. He made a good one, too. So soft and cuddly. She could totally zen out just cuddling this fox child. But this time she made sure not to squeeze him like a stuffed animal.

Tails reached beneath the steering console and grabbed a leather cap with a pair of goggles which he pulled onto his head before taking a hold of the controls.

_Oh God... He's so FREAKING CUTE!_ thought Alex. And then, in the same thought, _Stop it, Alex. Now isn't the time for that! You haven't escaped quite yet! You're still in a risky situation!_

"Just hang on, okay?"

"Y-Yeah, w-way ahead of you on that," she replied, holding him tighter.

Tails blushed, smiling bashfully as he tried to focus. He had to rescue this girl and get them both to safety before...

Suddenly, multiple elevator doors opened all along the perimeter of the hangar bay. Mechas and Attack Drones came pouring in. And with them...

"DON'T LET THEM GET AWAY!"

Tails' eyes went wide. "ROBOTNIK! HANG ON, ALEX!!"

He pushed the controls forward and the plane plunged onwards. The Attack Drones open fired. Bullets and lasers ricocheted off the plane. Alex cried out and ducked her head as best she could.

"NO!" shouted Robotnik. "YOU'LL HIT THE GIRL!!"

Gradually, the drones stopped firing, though far too gradually for _her_ liking. _Guess I should be grateful I'm so freakin' special_ , thought Alex, knowing that were it not for Robotnik's orders, the drones may well have hit them.

The Tornado zoomed out of the hangar bay and dipped low. For a moment, Alex was certain they were about to plunge into the cold waters of North Lake. She screamed and buried her face into the crook of Tails' neck as her grip tightened around his waist.

But with the pull of a lever, the Tornado's jet booster kicked on and the plane shot up into the night sky. They had escaped!


	19. Chapter 19

Patrick was quite scared for Alex. But with Knuckles on the case, he felt certain that she'd be rescued in no time. Still, his worry persisted, and so he decided to do something productive with himself – playing video games. Despite what he'd told Alex about thinking Sonic was kind of lame, there was a time in his early childhood where he really enjoyed the franchise. It had been a long, long time, but recent events had given him a bit of a hankering to revisit that old interest.

He sat in front of his computer – the one he used strictly for gaming – and began to play Sonic Mania, the closest modern gaming had come to capturing the spirit of the old Genesis classics. He was so absorbed in what he was doing that he had quite lost track of time until there was a knock on his window, which alarmed him so badly that he toppled out of his seat.

"Wh-What the hell? But this the third floor!"

"Patrick Miller!"

Patrick's eyes went wide and he scrambled to his feet and threw open the window. There was Knuckles, clinging to the brick wall of the building with his... well, knuckles. He'd scaled the side of the building, found Patrick's window and, casually as you please, knocked and shouted his name.

"Dude! Shh!" hissed Patrick. "If my roommate hears you, we're busted!" He stepped aside to let his new echidna friend enter.

Knuckles pulled himself through Patrick's window and settled onto the floor. For a moment, the echidna's purple-hued eyes glanced around at Patrick's living space. Unimpressive.

"So," said Patrick in a low volume that he hoped Knuckles would adopt himself. "How'd it go? Is Alex all right? Did you save her?"

Here it was. The moment that Knuckles was dreading. He had to tell Patrick the truth. Even if it was embarrassing to do so.

"I managed to track the chaos energy all the way to the lake, but..." Knuckles turned his gaze away and grit his teeth. "I lost track of it there."

Patrick listened, his face growing pale.

"I assume wherever they took her... it's out on the lake. But with night falling, there was simply nothing more I could do." Knuckles hung his head shamefully. "I'm sorry... I've failed you, Patrick Miller."

Patrick collapsed onto the edge of his bed where he sat, staring off into space, looking at nothing in particular. Almost as though he'd gone catatonic.

"I-It's not your fault..." he said slowly, as though he were in a trance. "You... you did your best..."

He looked sick, or like he might go into a permanent catatonia. The kid sure had it bad for this girl. And that poor girl... What were they doing with her? Even though she was someone Knuckles had never properly met, he'd seen her from afar, and she seemed a pleasant person. Whatever fate she'd been delivered to, no doubt she was undeserving of it. He hated to think of what that Robotnik had in mind for the girl. And seeing Patrick almost slip into something of a catatonic state over it sent Knuckles into something of a brief panic.

"Look, I never said that I'm giving up!" he insisted, and Patrick perked up. "Far from it. First thing in the morning, I'll head back out to the lake and see what I can find. I won't let that madman hold that girl against her will for long."

Patrick shot to his feet and grabbed Knuckles' large gloved hand in both of his and shook it. "Oh man... Thank you! Thanks so much! You have no idea... I just... She's just..." The young man was getting choked up. "She's really so perfect! You'll see what I mean when you meet her."

"Right. Sure. I'll find her, Patrick Miller. I just need more time. When daybreak comes... I'll head out straight away. Until then..."

Feeling bad for the boy, Knuckles gave him one last pitying glance before he turned away. He had just slung his leg over the window when Patrick stopped him.

"Hey, wait a sec, man." When Knuckles glanced back at him, Patrick rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and said, "Do you, like, have a place to stay or anything? Because if you don't, I mean, you could always crash here with me. We'd just have to keep it on the down-low, you know? Because of my roommate."

Knuckles furrowed his brow. "You're offering me a place to stay?"

"Yeah. I mean, it's the least I can do."

Knuckles gazed at Patrick a moment, then looked around the room again. "This roommate of yours... Is he very small? Because this room isn't very big and I really can't see where you must be keeping him. It's a wonder that you can stay in such a small space as it is."

Patrick slapped a hand to his face. "N-No, man... This is my _bedroom_. There's more to this apartment. Like, ya know, a bathroom, a living room... My roommate has his own bedroom. And, I mean, you don't _have_ to stay if you don't want to. But I just thought... Well, I know the room is small, but it's gotta beat staying wherever you're staying now, right? I mean, it's not like you can check into a hotel or anything... ya know, bein' the 'Red Devil' and all."

For a moment, Knuckles just stared at him, scrutinizing the boy with his stoic purple gaze. Patrick could never quite tell what the echidna was thinking, but his gaze was making him uncomfortable. He decided not to push the issue.

"Hey, it's up to you, man," he said with a shrug. "I won't force you. But, you know, having friends and accepting help... that doesn't make you weak." Patrick took a seat at his desk and booted up the game once more, putting his back to Knuckles. "Do what feels comfortable for you, man."

For a moment, Knuckles stood in silent contemplation. Something the boy said to him really struck him. Having friends and accepting help didn't make him weak. Finally, the echidna spoke.

"I... will stay." Then, as though to cover up any perceived sentimentality, he quickly added, "You know, in case it ends up raining any more tonight. Hiding in the trees in the woods won't be very comfortable during a rainstorm."

Patrick merely nodded, suppressing a chuckle. Knuckles might not like it if he laughed. After all, how did the lyrics of that old song from Sonic Adventure go? 'Unlike Sonic, I don't chuckle.' This thought only forced Patrick to suppress another laugh. It was then he felt a large hand come to rest upon his back.

"Thank you, Patrick Miller..."

Knuckles had actually thanked him. Who'd have thought? Though, there was one thing Patrick noted; he kept calling him 'Patrick Miller.' This time Patrick did chuckle, as he glanced over his shoulder and smiled.

"Hey, no problem, man. That's what friends do, right?"

Then, turning back around to the computer, if only to give Knuckles his dignity – for he knew the echidna was proud and that it hadn't been easy for him to accept the invitation – Patrick began playing the game once more.

"And you can just call me Patrick. No need to be so formal, Knuckles the Echidna," he gently teased. "Incidentally, feel free to ask for a turn," he said, nodding at the game. "Should the mood strike you, of course."

The echidna guardian glanced at the computer screen. "A turn? At one of those strange video stories? No... No, thanks."

Knuckles slung his patch-work duffle bag onto Patrick's bed before hopping up onto it. Then, arching an eyebrow, he asked, "Do you have any grapes?"

***

"IT'S GONE!!"

After his unsuccessful excursion to find Alex, Sonic had returned to her apartment, but the later it got and she still didn't show, he began, quite literally, bouncing off the walls with anxiety. It was really, really late, and Sonic was certain that Alex should've been back by now.

All he could think was, _What if something happened to her?_ _What if... Alex's stalker!_

What if something happened with _that_ creep?

_Chill Sonic,_ he'd told himself. _She could be on her way back even now._

There was one way he could be sure – check the Chaos Emerald. If she was nearby, it would be glowing quite brightly. Sonic zipped into Alex's bedroom and opened the door to her closet. There was a lockbox on the top shelf where they were keeping the Chaos Emerald. He entered the combination, but when he opened the box... It was missing.

This was bad. _Really_ bad!

"Oh no... Alex! This is no stalker. This smells rotten. Like a big ol' rotten Eggman!"

It was after midnight; it was dark out. If he hurried, there would be no need to wear Liam's clothes. He didn't know where to look, but if he would scour all of Scottstown _and_ North Lake City if he had to, just to find her.

Sonic ran Alex's window, ready to leap out and go find her. He didn't care how badly it was storming outside. He was going to find her and rescue her!

"Hold on, Alex! I'm coming!"

Just then, he heard a scuffling outside the apartment door and a key turning in the lock. Alex! It had to be her! Sonic raced to the door, trying his damned hardest not to look as if he was totally worried about her... even if he was.

The door opened. There was Alex, oddly, still in her swimsuit. And furthermore, she was barefoot! This was all the more peculiar, since it had been storming something fierce outside for the better part of the day. Why would she have been wandering around in the rain dressed like this?

"Alex!" he exclaimed, trying not to sound too relieved. "You're—"

He hesitated at the sight of her. She was sporting several scrapes on her arms and legs, like she'd taken a run through a bramble patch.

"Oh, Alex! What the hell happened to you? Are you okay?"

Slowly, she staggered into the apartment, utterly soaked, and dripping puddles on the floor. Another curiosity, she appeared to be carrying something on her back. Whatever it was, it was covered entirely by her sports jacket, as though she wished for it to remain hidden. But the moment she stepped across the threshold and closed the door, the jacket slid off and a familiar voice cried his name.

"SONIC!"

"TAILS!?"

Down from Alex's back hopped Tails, who ran to his best friend, throwing his arms around his waist, his twin tails wagging happily.

"Boy, am I glad to see you!"

Sonic gave his young friend a confused smile. "Take it easy, lil' bro..."

Tails didn't seem to be pried off easily, but Sonic somehow managed it. The young fox was clearly in a mild case of distress, but he seemed happy enough to be near Sonic.

"Tails," said Sonic, holding him at arms' length, "What are _you_ doing here?"

Tails rubbed the back of his head and said, "Well..."

"And Alex... what's going on? Where have you been??"

Alex, who seemed to be swaying rather unsteadily on her feet, forced herself to smile at him. "Heh... Sorry I'm late," she said, trying at a bit of levity. "I got a little... sidetracked..."

Then, she collapsed.

"ALEX!" exclaimed Tails, running to her side, but, of course, Sonic beat him there.

"ALEX! HEY, ALEX!!"

He placed a hand on her shoulder, but she wouldn't budge. Her breathing was wheezy and labored. This was crazy! First, Alex was gone all day long, the Chaos Emerald turned up missing, and now, she showed up, scraped to hell and back, and had Tails with her. One thing was for sure, whatever was going on, Sonic was not about to let it happen without him again!

"Oh no," said Tails. "I was afraid of this..."

"Afraid of what? Oh man, she sounds really bad. Tails, help me get Alex to her bed! And then... you had better start filling me in on what's going on, li'l bro! You know how much I hate being left in the dark!"

At Sonic's request, Tails grabbed Alex's legs and hoisted them up as best he could while Sonic grabbed her beneath her arms. Together, they carried her to her bed.

"Ngh... What I... ngh... mean... was that she's had this really bad cough. I don't know when exactly she got it."

Somehow, they managed to wrangle her up onto the bed.

"Oof! A-Anyway, she said something about jumping out of Robotnik's flying car and into the lake. So maybe that's when it started. And after I crash landed the Tornado, we had to walk all the way through the woods and cross a highway to get here. She wasn't wearing anything but a bathing suit and she insisted I wear her coat. I feel really bad for her. I think she's been through a lot."

Sonic shook his head. Everything Tails told him was disjointed. The boy was rambling. "Tails... Tails! Look, I'm glad that Alex is back home, but she's not well. _We're_ going to have to help her out here. We'll keep her warm, maybe see if she's got any soup or anything here. And while we do all of that, you're going to start over from the beginning and actually explain everything to me in order from start to finish. Because as it stands... Nothing you've just said makes a bit of sense."

"S-Sorry," Tails stammered, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's just... I don't really even know _where_ to start. I mean, _my_ part in this all begins back on our world when I was tracking the source of all that Chaos Energy. Sure enough, Robotnik had all seven Chaos Emeralds in his new secret base. He captured me _and_ the Tornado. Then, with all seven emeralds, he induced Chaos Control. The last thing I knew before I was locked away in a holding cell was that we'd been transported to a different dimension. After that, I kinda lost track of time."

That explained how _Tails_ had gotten here. But what happened to Alex? She was supposed to be with that Patrick kid. They were supposed to be together getting coffee or something.

"For what I presume was days, I worked at hacking the control system that kept me locked in the prison cell," Tails explained. "When I finally got out, I was using the ventilation system to escape to the hangar bay where Robotnik was keeping the Tornado. On the way, I picked up a chaos energy signature on my radar and it led me... to her." He glanced over at the girl as she lay unconscious in her bed. "Alex. She was crying for help, and I knew I couldn't just leave her there. We worked together to escape."

"But Alex... how did _she_ get caught by Robotnik? And what happened to the Chaos Emerald that we stashed here?"

As though she could hear them talking about her, Alex groaned in her sleep. Her eyes fluttered as her head turned on her pillow.

"Nnn... S-Sonic...?"

He spun around and ran to her side. "Alex? It's me. I'm here!"

At the sound of his voice speaking her name, Alex's eyes fluttered open halfway and she turned her head towards him. Whimpering, she grabbed his hand and held it tightly.

"S-Sonic... I'm... I'm sorry. I'm really sorry! I know shouldn't have kept it from you. But..."

Crying, she recounted her story for him. Starting with how Robotnik had stalked her at work one day, of how he informed her that she was essentially a living Chaos Emerald and wanted to harness her power, and of how she could do naught but convince him to give her time to think about it, which he begrudgingly granted, but not without making it known that he could've just had Stark come and take her away.

"A-And then he... he threatened my mom if I didn't keep everything between me and him," she explained. "S-So th-that's why I c-couldn't t-tell you. But I should I have. I see that now. Oh, Sonic..."

She had a brief coughing fit before she took up her story once more, telling him of how Sage and Stark had been spying on her during her swim meet and how they'd followed her and Patrick to the café.

"When I r-realized they were there for me, I gave Patrick my duffle bag. The Chaos Emerald was in there. I know, I know," she said quickly, before he could admonish her. "I'm sorry! I shouldn't have taken it. It's just... I feel so much better when it's around. Like I'm less likely to flicker, you know? It was stupid. But giving my bag to Patrick... It's the only thing I could think of to do to keep it out of Robotnik's hands."

She went on to tell him of her escape attempt, how she'd run into the woods to escape them, too afraid to lead them home, too afraid that in a heroic attempt to rescue her, Sonic would expose himself.

"I didn't want anything to happen to you," she said, still in tears. "But I was foolish. So foolish."

She told him of how they'd caught up to her. Of how Sage had grabbed her, and his strange ability to put her into a sleep or a daze with a single touch of her cheek. She told him of how she awoke in Robotnik's car and everything that followed, including her leap off the roof and into the lake, her failed attempt to swim to shore, and of the Robo Dome.

At this point, her words became more slurred and disjointed as she seemed to be fading back into fatigue. She said something about Edgar Roman... about the REMgage... something about Robotnik's desire to use her to power the REMgage for some 'project.' And then, she said something... something about Sage... about being alone with him... about...

Sonic put his hands on the edge of her bed, his fingers digging into the mattress. "W-What? What did Sage do?!"

But her words became even more disjointed and unfocused. Her crying made it harder and harder to make sense of what she was saying. And then... she was out once more.

Tails shook his head. "I don't know what she means about Sage. Though, just before I met her, I heard her screaming and crying out for help. M-Maybe..." He chewed his lip nervously. "Maybe he was torturing her. But she never really told me, and I was too afraid to ask."

Sonic's gaze narrowed and his hands curled into fists. He didn't know really what it was that Sage had done to Alex. But whatever it was, it had distressed her greatly.

"It doesn't matter what he did. But if he's laid a hand on her... I'll tear him apart, piece by piece."

Frowning, Tails placed a hand over Alex's forehead. "Oh man, Sonic... she's burning up. We'll have to break her fever. Otherwise..." He gazed at Sonic with wide blue eyes, and in them, Sonic could see that even in his short time with her, Tails had come to feel the same sort of protectiveness for Alex that he felt himself.

"How? What do we do, Tails?" Sonic wasn't usually the type to panic, but seeing Alex like this... Well, there was a first time for everything.

"Just short of taking her to the doctor—"

"Which we can't," said Sonic, knowing already what Tails did not. They were fictional characters on this world and unable to roam freely.

"...she needs time. Rest."

They watched as Alex began to shiver.

"She's cold," said Tails. "And still wet. I-I wonder if we should c-change her c-clothes..." He was barely able to articulate this suggestion without stammering and blushing embarrassedly. He averted his gaze and cleared his throat. "Or at the very least, try to keep her warm."

Sonic chewed his lip as he stared at Alex for a moment, knowing that her swimsuit had to come off. But Tails was certainly too embarrassed to do it. Sonic gulped hard, the slightest blush coming over his furry cheeks.

"W-Well, to help Alex... I'll do whatever it takes."

Tails took note of the determined yet embarrassed expression on his elder friend's face. "P-Perhaps if I hold a blanket over her and you u-undress her beneath the b-blanket... th-then n-neither one of us will have to l-look," he stammered, his furry little cheeks still blushing.

Sonic's eyes narrowed the slightest bit as he looked at his young friend. "Yeah... I guess _that's_ our best option," he mumbled. "Thanks Tails..."

Having agreed upon this course of action, Tails took hold of the blanket and, hovering in the air just above Alex, he held the blanket over her body, allowing Sonic to reach underneath and remove her suit like a surgeon working on a patient beneath a surgical drape.

"O-Okay... Y-You ready? Hoo boy, I sure hope she doesn't wake up and get the wrong idea. Be quick, Sonic!"

With another loud gulp, Sonic slipped his hands under the blanket, clenching his teeth as he muttered, "Don't wake up, don't wake up, don't wake up..."

He had to feel around for the straps of her spandex swimsuit, though his hands accidentally grazed over something... else. Sonic's eyes went wide, and his cheeks seemed to pale and flush at the same time.

"Uh... W-Whoops..."

Tails' eyes went wide. "What happened?! What happened?!"

"N-Nothing! Would you j-just relax?"

Sonic swallowed once more, even more audibly than before, as he managed to take a hold of Alex's swimsuit and began sliding it off of her body.

"Oh... _Please_ don't wake up!"

Alex moaned in her sleep and tuned her head on the pillow. She didn't wake, but the sounds she was making... Even though they were sounds of distress, they were just a little too...

"C-Come on, Sonic," said Tails nervously. "Can't you do it any faster?"

"TAILS!" he admonished between his teeth. "Let me... handle this!" Sonic drew in a deep breath and slid the suit down Alex's long legs, at last freeing her from her wet cocoon. "Phew! Got it."

Sonic held up the dripping wet swimsuit, looking at it. A small blush came to his face as he glanced back at Alex, who was now sans clothing under that blanket. And this suit had been clinging so close to her...

Tails let out a sigh of relief and dropped the blanket back over Alex. "Whew..." he said, plopping onto the edge of the bed and wiping the back of his hand across his forehead. "I think that was the scariest thing we've ever done, Sonic. But at least she's got that wet thing off."

"Might not be wrong there, li'l bro."

Sonic zipped off to Alex's bathroom and slung the suit over the shower rod before returning. She was still quite out of it. With another groan, Alex curled onto her side, visibly shivering beneath the blanket.

"She's still cold," said Tails. "We'll have to keep her warm so she doesn't get sicker."

To Sonic's annoyance, the young fox boy curled up beside Alex and snuggled against her from behind. He put an arm around her waist, but with a great sense of propriety; he atop the comforter, and Alex beneath it, ensuring a prudent separation between him and the bare girl beneath. For added warmth, the fox boy draped his fluffy tails across her, offering more body heat.

"W-Wait a minute, Tails... Why are _you_ the one who gets to keep her warm? _I_ could warm her up, you know!"

Tails lifted his head, peeking at Sonic from over top Alex. "Because _I'm_ soft and fuzzy," he said, almost boastfully.

That cocky smile... This kid was enjoying himself too much!

"Hmph. Just 'cause you've got big fluffy tails..." Sonic grumbled.

"'Sides," he said. " _You_ were the one who took her clothes off. Don'tchya think she might be a little... upset... when she finds out?"

Sonic's eyes grew wide and a nervous shiver ran through him. Yeah, if Alex woke up and realized Sonic, the one who stripped her nude, was cuddling her, she _might_ be a bit peeved.

Tails snuggled back down beside Alex. "Besides..." he said, letting out a long yawn. "I'm exhausted." He closed his eyes and nuzzled against Alex's back. "But you don't have to go, Sonic," he said softly, in the tones of a child on the brink of a deep sleep. "In fact, I..." He yawned again. "I'd feel better if you stayed. I was... scared too..." No sooner had his head hit the pillow, the kid was already snoring softly.

Sonic crossed his arms over his chest and just sighed a little as he looked at the two of them. "Tails..." He took a seat on a chair by Alex's dresser as he gazed at his two friends and smiled softly. "I'm just glad you're both okay."

The night wore on, and Sonic continued to sit in that chair watching over Alex and Tails. Both of them had been through quite the ordeal, and he had to admit, he was really proud of Tails for getting himself and Alex out of Robotnik's hidden base. Though, Sonic still wished that he would've known about the whole thing. He could only hope that, going forward, there would be no secrets between he and Alex.

Tails slept soundly. He must've been quite comfy... the loveable little twerp. Alex, too, slept deeply but for the occasional coughing fits, but at least she wasn't shivering as much.

Sonic was just beginning to nod off when he was awoken by a sound of distress. Alex was whimpering and muttering softly in her sleep.

"N-No... I-I won't... L-Let me go... I w-won't do it... S-Sonic... Sonic, help... please..."

From beneath the covers, she stretched her arm out, seeking Sonic's help. Eyes wide and full of concern, Sonic zoomed to her beside. She wanted _his_ help? What should he...? Her hand fumbled across the mattress, searching for something.

That's when he spotted it on the floor, as though it had fallen there, half-hidden under the bed; her Sonic the Hedgehog plush. The one she'd slept with since infancy. It briefly occurred to Sonic that it was lucky Tails hadn't seen that, or else he might've had a _lot_ of questions, and that would have only delayed their efforts to help Alex. In fact, it was fortunate the room was dimly lit, hiding the Sonic the Hedgehog 2 poster on the wall. There would be plenty of time to explain things to Tails later. But at the moment, Alex was in distress, and she was searching for her doll.

Sonic reached down and picked it up. A small smile came to his face as he looked it over. "Sorry, Tails. Sometimes there's some tasks that can only be handled by a hedgehog."

Sonic carefully slipped his plushy doppelganger into Alex's grasp. With Alex's arm curled around the little stuffed version of himself, Sonic moved his hand her head and gently trailed his fingers through her hair.

"Don't worry, Alex... I'm here for you. I'm _always_ here for you."


	20. Chapter 20

Patrick felt the warmth of the morning sun hitting his eyelids. Groaning, he sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Ugh... Man, why'd I stay up so late last night?"

He got out of bed and began to undress. He had just stripped down to his boxers when he turned around to face the window and let out a startled cry. Knuckles was sitting in the window, gazing almost broodingly out at the sky.

Patrick placed a hand over his heart and took a seat on his bed. "Jesus..." he said. "I forgot you were here. You almost gave me a heart attack. Have you been awake this whole time?"

Knuckles merely sat there, gazing out the window of Patrick's bedroom. He had been silently observing the outside world, though not truly looking at anything in particular. If anything, it was more of a feeling he was having. He replied to Patrick without actually answering his question.

"She's back."

At first, Patrick wasn't sure what he was talking about.

"Your friend. She's nearby. I can sense the Chaos Energy that I associated with her."

"A-Alex??? She's back?!"

Knuckles' purple eyes narrowed. "Unless it's Robotnik's minions and they have the source of said energy. But... it's strange. This doesn't feel like an emerald to me, but it's definitely Chaos Energy..."

But Patrick was hardly listening to him. Instead, he was getting dressed in a frenzy. "She's back? She's really back? Well, then she must've escaped! W-Whoa!"

Patrick had tumbled onto the floor while attempting to put on his pants. Now, he lay on his back as he struggled to get them on. "Oh, man... I knew she was clever! I hope she's all right."

Knuckles merely shook his head as he returned his gaze out the window. "I don't like this, Patrick. A girl like her... I don't think she would've escaped from Robotnik so easily. And he certainly wouldn't have simply let her go." The echidna clenched his teeth and pounded his fist into his palm. "This feels like a trap."

But Patrick had leapt back to his feet and was zipping up his jeans and putting on a shirt. "I've gotta go see her!"

"HEY! Are you even listening to me? I said that I think this might be a trap!"

Patrick couldn't help but laugh. "A trap for who? Sonic? Trust me, if Alex was hanging around with Sonic the Hedgehog, she would've said something. And I'm a big nobody. Robotnik wouldn't be interested in me. There must be _some_ explanation."

Knuckles supposed Patrick had a point. It seemed that Robotnik wasn't aware of _his_ presence, at least that he knew of. So obviously there was no trap laid for _him_. And there was no evidence that anyone else from his world had appeared, at least that Knuckles had seen. Perhaps he was just being paranoid. Still, it made him uneasy.

Patrick pulled on a hoodie and zipped it up before grabbing Alex's duffle bag and slinging it over his shoulder. "But since you're worried... Here." He tossed Knuckles the white Chaos Emerald Alex had been carrying. "You can keep that safe. That way, if it _is_ a trap, no one will get their hands on it. I'll report back to you and let you know if it was all just a trick, okay?" With that, he was off like a shot, slamming the door behind him.

Knuckles glanced down at the white emerald in his hand, watching its steady glow. Smiling, he gave it a little toss into the air.

"Clever boy..."

***

Patrick was out of breath and had a stitch in his side by the time he knocked on Alex's apartment door. "Hey, Alex? Alex, it's Patrick Miller! I-I wanted to check on you... after yesterday and all. Are you all right in there? Hellooo? Alex!!!"

He felt a little bad at the prospect of waking her up, but he could always apologize later. Given the situation, he was certain she'd forgive him. After all, the last time he'd seen her, she was running from the pursuit of two rather intimidating men, one of them quite large; pursuers whom he only later realized were androids built by Dr. Robotnik. He had every right to be concerned and to want to check up on her. In fact, she'd probably be flattered that he did so.

Sonic was up with the sun, glad to see that the storm had finally let up. He had dozed on and off in that chair at Alex's bedside, catching sleep whenever it came. He didn't sleep much, though. He supposed he was fast in every regard, even when it came to sleeping. He was occupying himself with a pair of headphones and listening to some Earth tunes – this planet had some pretty solid music – so, at first, he didn't hear the commotion at the door.

"Alex! Hello?"

Inside the apartment, Tails popped up with a start, his fur disheveled. He rubbed sleepily at his eyes. "Nnnn... S-Sonic? What is that? Is someone at the door? Who is it?"

"ALEX? IT'S PATRICK MILLER! I NEED TO TALK TO YOU!"

Sonic lowered the headphones. "Oh no... not that guy again..."

Glancing at Alex, who was still dead asleep next to him and breathing raggedly, but no longer shivering, Tails said, "Should we wake her?"

Sonic glanced at Alex and shook his head. With how bad she'd been, it would be best if she kept sleeping. "I'll handle this."

He ran to the door, listening to Patrick shout a little more before he replied. Clearing his throat and trying to make his voice sound younger, Sonic said, "Who's there?"

When someone finally answered, it was not the voice Patrick was expecting. Instead of Alex, it was the voice of a young boy. Patrick, bewildered, replied, "Uh... It's Patrick Miller. I'm a friend of Alex's. Who are you?" He winced. _Crap. That's rude, Patrick. Whoever it is, they're someone who knows her, and probably better than you if they're actually in her apartment._

Sonic rolled his eyes. Patrick; the boy that Alex seemed to entrust all her secrets to. The boy she went out to lunch with. The boy who could do nothing when Robotnik's androids kidnapped her. The last person Sonic really felt like talking to right now. He leaned his back against the door, crossing his arms as he replied.

"This is her little brother, Soni—" He almost spouted out something that would've sounded preposterous to this young man. "Son... Sonny. Her brother, Sonny!"

Patrick remembered the little boy that had accompanied Alex that day on the bus, the first day he actually spoke to her. So, his name was Sonny? _Heh. cute name._

Though the way Sonny had stammered it out made Patrick wonder if the kid was really shy, or perhaps it was a 'stranger danger' sort of thing.

_Smart kid, at any rate,_ thought Patrick. "Is Alex there?" he asked. "Can I talk to her? I, uh, I have her duffle bag."

Sonic turned toward the door. Patrick had something of Alex's. Her duffle bag! Something she'd want back. And that duffle bag maybe had the Chaos Emerald in it!

_Shit._

Sonic raised an unnecessary finger at the closed door, saying, "Uh... Just a second." He zoomed about the apartment, quickly locating Liam's clothes. But he still couldn't answer the door and look straight at Patrick. He'd see his face! Was there anything else he could make use of? He found some more of Liam's belongings stashed away in a coat closet, one of which was some kind of mask made of white plastic with dark black lenses. He recognized this as being from that Star Wars thing that Alex had some stuff of.

Perfect.

Furrowing his brow, Patrick put his ear to the door and listened. He could hear a shuffling, as though the kid was up to something in there. What could he possibly be doing? Maybe he was getting Alex!

Patrick straightened up and ran a hand through his hair in a futile attempt to try and smooth it down. The door opened a crack and Patrick quickly lowered his hand. But it wasn't Alex. Instead, he gazed down at the pint-sized squirt, who was apparently Alex's little brother, and stifled a laugh. What was he wearing?! A Stormtrooper mask beneath his hoodie, a pair of white gloves, and that same pair of Sonic sneakers. But what the kid said next sobered him right up.

"Alex isn't feeling well. She's sleeping right now."

"She's not feeling well? Is she okay?!"

Sonic stared at Patrick through the plastic mask, wishing he could just tear the thing off. It was hot and stuffy. "She's got the flu really bad. I think she's contagious. I'm okay though, because my mask makes me invincible."

"Wh-What? Really? The flu?" said Patrick. "That's awful!" Though, despite the seriousness of the situation, he once more had to stifle a laugh at Sonny's insistence that the mask made him invincible. But the flu... Did Alex really have the flu?

Sonny shoved his hand out through the door toward Patrick. "I'll take her duffle bag, though. She'll be really happy to get it."

Sonic was eager to get that bag from Patrick and send the boy on his way, especially if it meant getting the Chaos Emerald back and letting Alex rest more. He didn't want to risk waking her up when she needed more sleep.

Patrick hesitated, even as Sonny held out his hand for the bag. It just seemed so odd, given that Alex had been captured by Robotnik's robots. How would she escape and get home... _and_ get the flu? It also seemed strange that Alex's little brother, who looked as though he were maybe 10 at the oldest, would be caring for her instead of someone older and more responsible.

"Um... that's nice of you to take care of your older sister, Sonny. But, uh, aren't you guys' parents available?"

Sonic stared at Patrick for a moment. Patrick couldn't see the incredulous expression on his face. Parents? Alex's parents? Bus Boy didn't know? So, there _was_ something that Sonic knew that Patrick didn't! Well, that was something! Maybe this would help get rid of him faster.

Sonny's arm dropped to his side and the Stormtrooper mask stared blankly back at him. "Mom's in the hospital and Dad's dead," he said in a flat, blunt tone.

The expression on Patrick's face made it all worth it. He looked as if he were gulping like a fish out of water, unable to get anything out. Sonic couldn't help but smile a little bit. _Gotcha..._

Patrick tried to speak, but failed. He wished more than anything he hadn't asked about their parents. Finally, he managed to get out, "I-I'm sorry. Oh man... I-I'm so sorry. Um... look, I didn't mean to be insensitive."

The more Sonic watched him, the more he began to feel a bit bad for Patrick. Maybe he was being just a bit too hard on the kid. Perhaps Patrick wasn't so bad. Maybe he just legitimately wanted to help.

"Uh, look," said Patrick, running a hand through his wavy hair, "If you or your sister need anything, I'd be happy to do anything I can to help. I got my flu shot this year, so if you need someone to help look after her..."

And with that offer, Sonic immediately went back to wanting Patrick gone. He extended his hand once more. "Bag please..."

With a sigh, Patrick unshouldered the duffle bag and handed it over. "Listen, I really _am_ sorry," he said, hoping he hadn't offended the kid too much, and further hoping – rather desperately – that Sonny wasn't going to tell his sister about his faux pa. "Uh, so like, when your sister feels better," he said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "Could you, like, have her call me or something? Or at least just let her know I was worried about her and that I'd like to, uh, ya know... have coffee again sometime?"

Sonic didn't reply to Patrick's apology or his attempts to make good. He simply took the duffle bag and stared up at Patrick, letting him talk. And the kid sure seemed to take his time coming to the end of his spiel.

"Oh! Hey, uh, did your sister..." he trailed off. _Seriously? What were you going to say, Patrick? 'Did your sister mention anything about being kidnapped by Dr. Robotnik?' Idiot._ Patrick shifted nervously. "Uh, nevermind. I'll just, uh, talk to her later." With his shoulders slumped, the boy turned to leave.

Sonic was starting to feel bad again. Rolling his eyes and inwardly groaning, he called out to Patrick. "Hey..."

When Patrick stopped and looked back at Sonny, the boy was tapping his foot, almost impatiently. Ironic, given the shoes he wore.

"I'll tell Alex you were here."

Patrick's face lit up. "R-Really? I-I mean, you will? Uh, thanks! Thanks, Sonny." Then, with a smile and a wave, Patrick Miller was gone.

Sonic was certain that he'd live to regret being nice to Patrick, but the guy did, at least, seem to care about Alex. But there's no way he could let Patrick in. Not in the state Alex was in... and not with he and Tails both there. Crisis averted, Sonic closed the door, pressing back against it. He pulled off the hood and the mask and let out a sigh of relief. And as timing would have it, that's when the phone inside Alex's duffle bag began to ring.

"Whoa! What!?"

Sonic opened the bag and unthinkingly reached inside. A quick shuffling unearthed the phone. The screen told him that the caller was 'Mom,' and that the phone battery was getting low.

"Oh... Uh..." Sonic glanced helplessly back toward Alex's room before glancing back at the phone in his hand. Taking a deep breath, he swiped his finger across the green icon and held the phone up to his mouth.

"Uh... H-hello?"

The voice that spoke back was simultaneously the sweetest and most confused sounding voice he'd ever heard.

"H-Hello?" And then, a little more sternly, as though the woman on the other side was pursing her lips. "Who is this? Are you a friend of Alex's?" And then, suddenly plunging into panicked mother mode, "Oh God! Is she all right? Are you a kidnapper? Oh my God!"

Sonic almost dropped the phone at the accusation. "N-No! I'm not a kidnapper. I'm Alex's... uh... her... friend. Her friend, Sonny." It looked like 'Sonny' was meeting all kinds of people today. "I didn't mean to startle you, ma'am. It's just that... Well, Alex is taking a nap at the moment and I was... uh... I was..."

_Well? What_ were _you doing?_ he admonished himself.

"...just checking on her. Because she's not feeling good."

This time, the woman responded in a more relieved tone of voice, though her concern still showed through. "Not feeling good? Is she all right? I've been worried sick about her. I thought for certain she would have called me to tell me how her swim meet went. She told me she was going out with a boy from class after the meet and that she'd call me afterwards, but I never heard from her and... Wait, are _you_ that boy?" And then, an excited gasp. "Are you her boyfriend?!"

Sonic's eyes went wide. Before he could stop himself from saying it, he blurted out, "Y-Yes! Yes, I am! Her boyfriend, yes!"

_Oh, Sonic... Alex is gonna kill you..._

"Oh my gosh! How wonderful! Why didn't she tell me about you?! But seriously, is she all right? How did the swim meet go? Do you know?"

"Oh! Yeah, I was there," said Sonic, grinning. "She did great! She got silver in the race, but gold in the diving. She was awesome, ma'am!" Sonic wasn't about to go into what happened _after_ the swim meet, but he saw no harm in telling Alex's mom how she did.

"Gold for diving? Really? That's wonderful! I'll have to act surprised when she tells me later, but I just couldn't wait to hear! I so desperately wanted to know." Sonic heard her let out a long sigh. "I only wish I could've been there..."

There was a moment of silence, and Sonic could almost feel the woman's sorrow radiating through the phone.

"Well, anyway, Sonny, it's very nice to talk to you. You sound so sweet. Alex will have to bring you by some time so we can meet properly. Oh, my name's Clara Parker, by the way. How bad is Alex? Did she push herself too hard this week? I know she had to work late this week, and with all of her classes and the swim meet... She really overworks herself, you know."

The woman was rambling in a very mom-like manner, but Sonic didn't mind talking to her. She sounded so pleasant. So sweet. Almost angelic, in a way. In fact, he found that he loved listening to her talk. Was this what it was like? Was this how it was to talk to your mom? Sonic had never known such. Monk was the only guardian he'd ever had, and he was more of a father than a mother. He was nothing like Clara Parker.

"Well, please tell her to call me back as soon as she can, all right?" asked Clara. "And promise me you'll take good care of her Sonny. You'll look out for her, won't you?"

"I'll do everything I can to make sure she gets better," Sonic promised her. "And you're right... Alex pushes herself way too hard. I just want her to get some rest and take it easy." Then he followed this up with something that caught even himself off guard. "I'm really glad you called, ma'am. It's really cool talking to you. I don't think I've ever talked to anyone as nice as you."

"Aww... Well, how sweet of you to say, Sonny. And please, there's no need to be so formal. Just call me Clara. Anyway, it's nice to hear you say that. Sometimes I don't feel like the best mother... Of course, that doesn't come from anything Alex has ever said," she quickly assured him. "She's never let on that she thinks I've been inadequate. In fact, she's always assuring me I shouldn't worry so much. But I've just been sick for so long, I've missed so many special events. I just wish I could be there for her the way a mother should be."

Sonic loved listening to the woman talk. Even though she was rambling, at no point did he find her remotely boring. There was no way that this woman could be lacking as a mother. She loved her daughter so much. That much was clear.

"Oh, listen to me rambling to you about my problems and we've barely even met." Clara laughed, but it sounded weak. In fact, the longer the woman talked, the more tired she sounded. "I'll let you go, Sonny. Please remind Alex to call me. And take good care of her. I _do_ worry about her often, so it's nice to know she's got someone to look out for her. Oh, and please... I know this isn't something you want to hear from _me_ , but please, _please_ use protection, all right? Girls can't always be the _only_ responsible ones, you know."

Sonic arched a brow. "Protection?"

Protection from what, exactly? Did Clara somehow know about Robotnik?? Well, if she did, there was no better protection than a speedy blue hedgehog with an attitude. That was the best protection Sonic could think of.

There was the sound of coughing and muffled talking. Then, Clara spoke again, her voice somewhat hoarse. "My nurse is telling me to get off the phone. Apparently, I've had too much excitement for one day. It was nice talking with you Sonny! Please come visit me sometime with Alex. And remember your promise." Then, presumably to her nurse, "Yes, yes. I know, I know. Goodbye, Sonny. Take care!"

"Goodbye, ma— uhh... Clara. It was really nice talking to you. I'll have Alex call you when she wakes up."

Clara hung up and Sonic gave a heavy sigh before flopping backward onto the couch.

"Wow. What a morning..."

Tails shuffled groggily into the living room, rubbing his eyes. "Nnn... What was that all about, anyway?" he mumbled sleepily.

When he lowered his fists from his eyes, his gaze took in the living room for the first time; the couch, the desk, the armchair, the flat screen TV and... the Sonic the Hedgehog video game cartridges, Sonic the Hedgehog DVDs, and the conspicuous pile of Sonic The Hedgehog comic books. For the briefest of moments, Tails beheld it all with a look of slack-jawed bewilderment. And then...

"AAHHHHHHH!"


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had intended to post more than just the one chapter today (the previous one), but then my furnace decided to go out. Well, that's totally cool. It's only like 20 degrees outside right now.
> 
> Anyway, it was super exciting to get my first comment on this story -- thank you! (And thank you, also, to the person who gave me a kudos.) I'm new to AO3, so this made me super happy. Thus, I've holed myself up in my bedroom with my space heater so I can toss out another chapter. In the meantime, hopefully the HVAC guys are on their way... ><

Patrick's roommate, Wes Easley, never seemed to sleep. He'd been awake and playing Fortnight when Patrick left to go see Alex. And when Patrick finally returned, he was _still_ sitting on the couch in the living room... _still_ playing Fortnite. In fact, Patrick was pretty certain he'd been at it all night.

Wes glanced away from the screen just long enough to see Patrick coming in with bags from the grocery store full of grapes. "Yo dude... That's a lot of grapes. You constipated or somethin'? You know, my mom... She gotta pretty good home remedy if you're backed up yo butt."

"Dude, I'm _not_ constipated. I just... had a craving. And you're seriously _still_ playing Fortnight? Instead of worrying about _my_ bowels, maybe you should check and make sure you've bothered to move _yours_ at all today... preferably in the bathroom."

Patrick and Wes, while not particularly close friends, were on good enough terms. Their roommate relationship could be considered somewhat playfully antagonistic. Perhaps that's why Patrick managed to handle Knuckles so well... Knuckles, who was adversarial-antagonistic. But Patrick was already convinced the he and the reclusive echidna were becoming friends, whether Knuckles would admit it or not. And with his little 'offering,' he was hoping they could become even better friends. He just hoped Wes wouldn't find out just what... _who_... he was hiding in his room.

Patrick opened the door to his bedroom and quickly closed and locked it behind him. Knuckles was sitting in the same position that Patrick had left him. Grinning, Patrick tossed him the grapes.

"There you go. Sorry we didn't have any last night. Please try to make them last. My roommate thinks I'm constipated."

Knuckles glanced down at the bag of sweet vine fruits and grinned. "Thank you," he said.

Patrick plopped down onto his back on the bed, crossing his arms behind his head as he gazed up at the ceiling, thinking about Alex.

Knuckles popped a few grapes into his mouth. They were good. Hardly as good as the ones back home, but they would do.

"So? What happened with your friend?"

"Oh, Alex?" Patrick sighed as he continued to stare up at the ceiling. "I spoke with her little brother. I guess she's sick. Poor little kid is taking care of her all by himself. I asked about their parents, and I really regret it now. Apparently, their father passed away and their mom's in the hospital. I really hope the kid doesn't tell Alex that I asked. Anyway, I gave him the duffle bag and he said he'd let Alex know I stopped by. I hope he was telling the truth. I get the feeling he doesn't like me very much."

"And...?" Knuckles waited, but Patrick gave him nothing. "Is that it?" Knuckles tossed the bag of grapes onto Patrick. They landed on his stomach.

"H-Hey, man! Why are you mad?"

"Did you even talk to _her!?_ What happened to _her!?_ Did you find out _anything!?_ Was it a trap? How did she escape from Robotnik? So far you've told me absolutely nothing!"

Slowly, Patrick sat up. "Oh... R-Right. I guess I just kinda forgot. I mean, her little brother was there, and he said Alex was sick." Then, shaking his head, he looked at Knuckles. "Come on, man! What was I supposed to do? It's not like I could just push her little brother out of my way and barge in there where she's sleeping and force her to tell me what happened... I mean, especially if she _is_ sick."

"And why not?" demanded Knuckles. "That's what _I_ would've done!"

Patrick sighed. "And _that_ , Knuckles, is why we _really_ need to work on your interpersonal skills."

Knuckles approached the bed, glaring so hard that Patrick had to avert his gaze to avoid those angry purple eyes. "With Robotnik involved, how do you know that the one you were talking to was _actually_ her little brother? For all you know that could've been one of Dr. Robotnik's mechanical fiends!"

At this, Patrick couldn't help but laugh. "Seriously, Knuckles? You're being ridiculous. I've seen the kid before. He can't be one of Robotnik's." Though it also suddenly occurred to Patrick that he'd never actually seen Sonny's face. Not the time on the bus, nor this most recent time. He'd either been keeping his hoodie down low or wearing a mask. It was admittedly a little strange. But did that mean something suspicious or sinister was going on? He wasn't so sure. But he didn't dare mention this to Knuckles.

"Damn it, Patrick! The girl could've been in danger even at her home!"

Patrick gulped nervously. But then, tentatively, he smiled. "So... you _do_ care about what happens to her," he said, quite pleased. "And here I was starting think you were suspicious of _Alex_ of all people."

Knuckles hmphed, otherwise disregarding Patrick's words. "A chance to uncover Robotnik's scheme, lost..." But then he tilted his head, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Though... we might _still_ have a chance to figure something out."

"What do you mean?" asked Patrick with furrowed brow.

Knuckles crossed his arms over his chest and gave Patrick a knowing look. "I might have an idea on how we can discover the truth about what's happening to your friend." A small grin spread across the echidna's face. "This girl... you seem to really like her -- to where the point of just thinking about her makes you completely useless in any important situation. Am I right?"

"H-Hey!" said Patrick, blushing. "I'm not useless! That's not true!" To emphasize his statement, he pounded his fist on the bed, accidentally squashing the grapes. "Ah! Aw man..."

Knuckles' gaze flicked down to the smashed bag of grapes. That was unfortunate... Perfectly good grapes wasted.

"You want to date her, is that right?"

Wiping his sticky hand on his pant-leg, Patrick mumbled, "Well, yeah... _that's_ true. But what are you getting at with this?"

Knuckles grinned. He had a feeling that his plan would suit the young man. "I have an idea that would get you in with her _and_ help us find out what we need to know."

"Huh? L-Like what?"

The echidna jumped onto the bed, seemingly so he could stand over Patrick and look more imposing and authoritative. "You, Patrick Miller, are going to go to that girl and you're going to ask her out on a date! You're going to take her out to eat... _and_ you're going to talk to her and find out anything that you can! If that's not a good idea, I don't know what is." Knuckles crossed his arms, grinning at the young man. "So? What do you think?"

Patrick blushed and averted his gaze. "W-Well, I-I mean, I already tried to... Well, see, I asked her out for coffee. She had this swim meet. And afterwards we went. I don't know if she thought of it as a date or not, but that's when those android guys showed up. As for a date-date... I mean, sure, that'd be nice. But..." Patrick rubbed the back of his neck, averting his gaze. "I don't know..."

Knuckles' grin slipped away. "What?! Aren't you interested in this girl?! Don't you want to be with her?! Where's your confidence, Patrick?!" He hopped off the bed, shaking his head in exasperation. "This won't do at all. Women aren't interested in men who lack confidence. If you like this girl, you have to take a deep breath and ask her out on a date. Especially if your last date was ruined by androids. This is your chance to have a _real_ date... That way you can find out just what happened to her."

Patrick closed his eyes and grit his teeth. Clenching his fists at his sides, he said, "A-All right, all right! I'll ask her out on a date... _after_ she's feeling better!"

Knuckles smirked, crossing his arms and nodding. "That's the spirit! And, of course, I could go with you... help keep an eye on things to make sure that there are no androids and ensure all goes well between you two."

Patrick blinked at him in surprise. "R-Really? You'd do that for me?"

"I will! I'll see that things go without a hitch! After all, if you like this girl as much as you seem to, then I see no reason why you shouldn't be with her. However, I know you're a nervous and uncertain sort of guy, so I'll tell you what I can do... I can give you the best advice you'll ever find on how to succeed on this date." With something of an arrogant grin, Knuckles pumped his thumb against his own chest. "Back home, I'm quite the romantic. So, if you just listen to me and do what tell you, she'll be yours in no time!"

***

For the next several hours, Alex was plunged into fever dreams. And each and every one seemed to feature one particular person – Sage. His face, his eyes, his long auburn hair hanging down out of its ponytail. The way he gazed at her and the way the red circuits on his face pulsed with crimson light. He stroked her cheek, telling her to be at ease. His lips lightly caressed her neck. And strangely, through it all, Alex felt not fear... but curiosity.

She was vaguely aware, now and then, of two other presences. Sonic and Tails checked on her often. Sometimes she felt someone's fingers trailing comfortingly in her hair. Other times, she was given tea or soup. At one point, she remembered laughing, saying, "Oh man... I really must be sick. I'm hallucinating Sonic and Tails are here giving me soup and tea."

By mid-day, Alex's fever broke and she shuffled out of bed, feeling much more coherent. She heard talking in the living room and went to investigate. Sonic was reclining on the living room couch, perusing through yet another issue of the old Archie Sonic The Hedgehog comics. Meanwhile, Tails was pacing back and forth, as though in a tizzy.

"I still don't get it!" he was saying, running a hand through his bangs. "Do we exist _because_ of _them_... or do these comics and video games exist because _we exist_?"

Sonic rolled his eyes, continuing to read his comic. "Tails, would you relax? It's not a big deal. In fact, it's kind of awesome. You should play one of the games. They're fun!"

"I just don't see how you can be so calm about all of this, Sonic! I mean, I'm having an existential crisis here, and all you do is read comics!"

"Um... I might be able to answer that question," said Alex, drawing their attention to her at last. Her hair was tousled and she was dressed in a pair of pink pajamas with strawberries and bunnies on them and white frills on the cuffs and hems.

Sonic quickly shot up, tossing the comic aside. "Alex! Hey! Are you okay? How are you feeling?"

Alex managed to give him a smile. "Better," she said as she took a seat next to him on the couch. "I think my fever broke," she said, touching her forehead to check. "Still have a bit of a cough, though. Anyway, looks like I'll survive." She gave Sonic another tentative smile before directing her gaze to Tails. "About your existential crisis... There's no need. I was asking myself those same questions when I first met Sonic, but during my recent time with Robotnik... Well, I've learned a few things. The first being... It's technically Robotnik's fault that you guys are famous on this world. I don't know all the details, but he was talking about some... invention... he created while on your world." She glanced at Sonic. "Something that was a prototype or offshoot from the REMgage, if I interpreted it correctly. He called it a 'Dreamcaster.'"

She gave Sonic a knowing look, as he had, by now, familiarized himself with Sega's flagship video game consoles. "Best I understand," she said, returning her gaze to Tails, "And again, a lot of this is just conjecture from the little bit he said, he used this... Dreamcaster... supposedly in an attempt to contact Earth. To sort of, like, 'tell his story' kinda thing – I guess, presumably, in the hopes that it would stick and someone would do something with it. Maybe he anticipated that Edgar Roman would activate the REMgage again, and then if the right person went in, someone with the right amount of knowledge about your world and the players or characters within it, so to speak... it would be the link he needed to get back here."

Sonic's eyes widened in understanding. "That was _you_ , right? So Robotnik set a trap for you, or at least someone _like_ you, who would imagine up a 'Sonic-related' daydream."

Alex nodded grimly. "Looks that way."

"Whoa... that all seems really complicated." He rubbed his head, looking as if trying to comprehend Robotnik's plan gave him a headache.

"Yeah, _you're_ telling me."

Tails, who'd been stroking his chin thoughtfully throughout her explanation, finally spoke up. "And yet... brilliant. This machine that he and this Edgar Roman guy built here on Earth served as a conduit between worlds. Robotnik knew he had to create a mental link between _our_ world and _this_ one using that machine. He relied on his knowledge of his partner's desire to use the machine again, and attempted to send 'dream waves,' for lack of a better term, into the world, perhaps via some sort of satellite?" Tails shook his head. He was getting sidetracked on the little details. "Anyway, he managed to place our world, our visages, in the public consciousness of _this_ world, all so he could create that mental link. Villain or no, you've got to hand it to him. It _was_ rather ingenious."

"And yet he still screwed up," said Alex, shooting a smile at Sonic. "He wanted to paint himself as the hero, but the folks at Sega – who for whatever reason seemed to be the main recipients of his 'dream waves,' interpreted the truth for what it was. Even on _this_ world he's seen as a villain. And that makes it more difficult for him to openly try anything."

Sonic simply grinned and picked his comic book back up. "That's right. Can you imagine if Sega made video games about Eggman The Doctor? Psh... get real..."

He settled back onto the couch and flipped open the comic once more, letting Alex and Tails explore all the in-depth how's, what's, and why's of Robotnik's plan. Ingenious or not, Sonic knew that Robotnik pulled all this off just so he could start trouble on a whole different planet, and it was up to _him_ to stop the ol' doctor. In the end, that's all that mattered.

"But there's one thing I don't understand," said Tails, plopping his chin on his fist. "To return to Earth he _also_ needed the seven Chaos Emeralds to induce Chaos Control. So, going from _this_ world to _our_ world, the REMgage shouldn't... _couldn't_ have been enough. How did he and Mr. Roman manage to harness the energy needed for such a leap?"

Alex raised her hand as though she were a student in Mr. Prower's Quantum Physics Technobabble Class. Tails, playing along, pointed at her.

"Yes, Miss Parker?"

Grinning, Alex said, "A Chaos Emerald."

Tails, however, frowned. "Normally, I'd agree with your theory, Alex. But there wouldn't be a Chaos Emerald on Earth, surely. At least not before all of us showed up on your planet..." He glanced uselessly at Sonic as though looking for verification from him. "Right?"

"Actually..." said Alex, "Robotnik said they did. He said that back in the 1980s when he and Edgar Roman were first working on the REMgage, it kept shorting out. There just wasn't enough power to keep it running the way it should... until they found a mystical gem with strange, mystical-like powers."

Tails' eyes went so wide they practically bugged out of his head. "Wh-What? Really?"

Alex nodded. "That's what he said. Trust me, I don't know how it's possible. Robotnik didn't seem to, either. But apparently, there was one here at one time. And that's what Edgar Roman used, alongside the REMgage machine, to make Robotnik... disappear. But, of course, the Chaos Emerald disappeared along with him."

Tails scratched his furry chin. "Intriguing. And now that I think about it... entirely plausible. There was a brief time on our world when there were only six Chaos Emeralds."

Alex's eyes lit up. "Really? Oh, like in the first Sonic game!"

Tails chuckled nervously. "Heh. Yeah... sure. But the question is..."

Tails and Alex spoke the question at the same time – "How did it get here?"

Sonic was only half listening to their discussion. His attention was elsewhere. But as he flipped to the next page in the comic he was reading, he came across something startling.

"WHOA! HOLD UP!!"

Tails went tumbling off the edge of the table he was sitting on and Alex jumped up in surprise.

"It's him!! What's _he_ doing in these comics?"

"Jesus, Sonic!" said Alex, slapping his leg. "You scared the hell outta me! What are you talking about? Who's _he?"_

She leaned over Sonic, her short, soft hair tickling his face as she peered at the comic, and specifically who he was pointing at. Sonic had to pull back a bit to keep from pressing his face in against Alex's soft hair. Why did she smell so nice?

"Oh, him?" she said, "That's Ixis Naugus, an evil wizard in the comic and SatAM continuities. Why? Do you..." Her eyes went wide and she brought her gaze to Sonic. From her position on the couch, hovering over him, they were almost nose-to-nose. "Wait... Do you know him??? You mean... _He's real?!"  
_

"Hell yeah, Naugus is real! Remember that wizard I told you about? The one who put a curse on Christmas Island and killed Monk? It was _that_ asshole who did it!" He jammed the comic with his index finger. "Naugus was the one who almost killed me when I was younger! At least before I defeated him and sent him packing into a portal of his own creation."

Alex collapsed backwards on the couch across from him. "S-Seriously? Wow... I wish you'd said something earlier. This is pretty big. I mean, a character aside from the heroic triad – that's you, Tails, and Knuckles, of course – and Robotnik, exists. Someone from the comics. Holy heck..." Her brow furrowed as though something Sonic had said was just now hitting her. "Wait a sec... You said... a portal? You sent him through a _portal?_ As in, like, to another dimension?"

"Yeah. In our last fight, Naugus was ripping holes in space, making all these portals all around. Looked like he was gonna rip the whole world apart."

Alex exchanged a glance with Tails. "Is that relevant?"

Tails took a step towards Sonic. "Sonic... This Naugus... Was any of his magic enhanced or drawn forth from any other sources of energy... such as... a Chaos Emerald?"

Sonic brought a hand up and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. It was a long time ago when this encounter happened. But then, he snapped his fingers.

"Ya know, I think he had one on the end of a staff! Yeah, he did! Because with a well-timed spin-dash, I broke his staff. The emerald bounced off through one rift and then I smashed Naugus into a different one. Then, all the portals disappeared."

"Aha!" said Tails.

"That's it, then!" said Alex.

The two glanced at each other, both grinning. "Mystery solved!"

It was almost ridiculous how in-sync these two were. Tails' geeky penchant for wanting answers to questions and Alex's own geekdom when it came to all things 'Sonic The Hedgehog' created quite a pair.

"So that explains how the Chaos Emerald got to Earth," said Tails.

"And why there were only six emeralds in _your_ world for a while."

"And the emerald came back when Robotnik was transported to _our_ world."

Sonic shook his head at the two of them. He could see interactions like this getting old rather quickly. However, he had to take a moment to consider what they'd just concluded. It meant that, inadvertently, _he_ was responsible for Robotnik's coming to theirworld. Because he'd broken Naugus' staff and sent that emerald through a portal, it wound up on Earth and in the hands of Charles Boddick and Edgar Roman. Granted, there was no way Sonic could've predicted what would've happened, so there was really no sense in dwelling on it.

"And now all seven Chaos Emeralds are in _this_ world," said Alex. Then, frowning, she asked, "Do we know if Robotnik has any? I mean, he said something about using _me_ to power the REMgage for whatever reason, and he said with me he didn't even need all seven emeralds."

"Still," said Tails worriedly, "We ought to do our best to keep him from getting his hands on any."

"Well, we at least have one, right Sonic...?" Alex trailed off and smacked a hand to her face. "Aw crap! That's right! Patrick has it! I gave him my duffle bag!"

Then, because she'd clearly forgotten, due to her fever, that she'd already regaled Sonic last night, she leaned towards him, pleading his forgiveness.

"I'm so sorry, Sonic! I didn't know what else to do. When Sage and Stark showed up—"

Sonic raised a hand before she could go off on a spiel. "Hey! It's okay. I know. But I almost forgot! That Patrick guy stopped by this morning wanting to talk to you."

At this news, Alex's face lit up, and Sonic could almost detect a blush on her cheeks. He wasn't sure he was crazy about the implication of that blush.

"Patrick stopped by?" But then, her expression became one of panic as she realized the danger in this. "Oh no... but you didn't... How did you... I mean, did he see you?"

"Don't worry. I threw _that_ stuff on," he said, motioning to a pile of Liam's clothes and a Stormtrooper Halloween mask.

"A Stormtrooper mask? You wore a Stormtrooper mask?!"

She began to laugh. And it was a laugh that Sonic was pleased to hear. He had been so worried about her last night that he was afraid he'd never hear her laugh, or see her smile, ever again. But now, here it was, and it was so refreshing.

"Oh man, Sonic... I would _pay_ to see you wear that! You'll put it on again later, right? For me? Just for a little bit?"

It did his heart good to hear her laugh and see her smile. It brought a smile to his own face, even as he shook his head and denied her request. "Nuh-uh. No way... I couldn't breathe. Anyway, I talked to him. And..." Sonic hopped off the couch and grabbed her duffle bag. "He brought your duffle bag back."

"He brought it back? Oh, awesome! Thank God!"

Alex quickly unzipped it and shoved her arm inside, frantically feeling around until, slowly, her expression fell. She gazed at Sonic in wide-eyed panic.

"It... It's not here..."

" _WHAT?_ What do you mean the emerald isn't there??" Sonic snatched the bag from her hands and turned it over to dump it out.

"S-Sonic!"

Everything fell out. Private items. Girl items; her hair dryer, a towel, her change of clothes, even her bra and underwear. Tails let out a cry of alarm and covered his eyes only to topple off the desk a second time. And yet... no emerald.

"J-Jeeze, Sonic..." Alex grumbled, quickly gathering up her unmentionables and stuffing them back into the duffle bag.

Sonic's eyes narrowed. "Why that rotten THIEF!" If Alex's reaction was one of panic, Sonic's was panic mixed with fury. Patrick... he seemed to care so much about Alex, but apparently, he didn't care about other people's belongings.

Alex held up a hand and gazed pleadingly at him. "H-Hold on. We don't know that for sure. M-Maybe it just, like, fell out or something."

Sonic crossed his arms over his chest looking quite indignant. "Oh yeah... It fell out all right! Right into that guy's greasy hands!"

"B-But we really don't know for sure—" Alex started, but Sonic continued to mutter furiously.

"Oooh... And he was acting like he cared so damn much this morning. Just wait until I get my hands on him!"

Alex's eyes lit up again. "Oh? He was, um, worried about me then?" she asked, trying to sound casual, but she couldn't hide that self-conscious tucking of her hair behind her ear.

But no matter how it sounded, Sonic wasn't having any of it. In fact, he was already storming towards the front door as though ready to hunt Patrick down.

"He doesn't know who he's messing with!"

"W-Wait a sec!" said Alex, reaching out to stop him. She tried to grab him, but her hand fell away and instead came to her mouth as she was overcome with another violent coughing fit.

Even if she hadn't done a good job convincing him about Patrick, this alone was enough to stop Sonic in his tracks. He spun back around as she hacked.

"Oh! Alex!" He went to her and placed a gloved hand on her arm. "Maybe we oughta get you back to bed. I guess you're not fully recovered yet, huh?"

"Y-Yeah. I guess so..." Alex wasn't trying to make Sonic worry or feel sorry for her. She couldn't help the coughing. But if that's what it took to keep him from doing something rash...

"After all," he said, "I promised Clara that I'd take good care of you. I can't break that promise."

Alex stopped her in her tracks and turned her wide-eyed gaze on him. "W-Wait... You talked to my _mom?_ When? How?!"

Sonic's eyes widened when he realized what he'd just said. "Ulp! Uh... Did I say that? Uhhh... Well... That is..." He brought his hand to his head, rubbing his brow and clearing his throat. "Okay, yeah... I talked to your mom. After Patrick left this morning, your phone rang and I... I answered it. You know, she sounds like a super nice lady. Though she certainly does ask a lot of questions."

Alex smiled. "Yeah, tell me about it."

Sonic gazed up at her with a look of concern on his face. "She sounded like she was really worried about you."

Alex's expression fell and she smacked a hand to her face. "Oh... crap. That's right! I was supposed to call her yesterday! She must've been worried sick! And I was supposed to visit her today! But..." She lowered her gaze, frowning. "I can't visit her the way I am now. I can't risk getting her sick... What did you say to her? Did you at least tell her I was okay?"

"Yeah. I told her you weren't feeling well after your swim meet. She just assumed that you over-worked yourself, but I promised her that you'd be alright. Especially because..."

Alex tilted her head. "Because...?"

Sonic lowered his gaze, running his fingers back through his quills in a nervous manner. "Uh... Well, let's just say that the next time you talk to your mom, she's gonna be under the impression that you're being looked after by your... boyfriend... named Sonny." He winced, unable to bring his gaze up to Alex after dropping that on her.

Alex's eyes widened. "S-Sonny? Sonny... as in _you?"_ She smacked a hand to her face. "Oh, Sonic..."

Tails glanced between Alex and Sonic. "Wait... You guys are dating?! How long have you known each other?!"

Alex and Sonic both shot Tails a look, one that made him quickly bury his face behind the comic book he'd picked up. Alex turned back to Sonic.

"Sonic... why—"

Whatever she'd been about to say ended in another series of coughs. When he tried to help her, she gently waved him away.

"Fine... I'm fine." She rose to her feet with a groan. "We can talk about this later," she said, giving him something of a stern look. "First thing's first... I'm gonna take a shower. Meanwhile, maybe you could make me some tea." She pressed a finger to his forehead and gave him a gentle, admonishing push as she walked by. "And it better be some damn good tea!" she called from the bathroom doorway.

From behind the door, Sonic could hear her turn the faucet with a squeak, and the sound of running water, followed by...

"Wait... How'd I get into my pajamas?"

Sonic turned toward Tails with another warning glare.

"Not a word, Tails... not a single word."


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last one for today!

While Patrick was forced to listen to Knuckles regale him of his many romantic conquests from back on his planet and was wondering how to politely shut him up, his phone rang. A quick glance at the screen revealed the name.

Alex Parker.

She was calling him! _She_ was calling _him_! Now, how was this for a turn of events? And they'd just been talking about her! Perhaps this was the opportunity he was looking for; the opportunity to ask her out on a real date! But would he have the courage? And if he didn't, would Knuckles beat it into him?

"This is perfect!" exclaimed Knuckles when he realized who was calling. "Answer it, Patrick! Talk to her!"

"Alright! Alright! Be quiet!"

When Patrick answered the phone, he heard that familiar voice on the other side, though it sounded far less energetic than he was used to.

"Hey... um... Patrick? It's Alex."

She definitely sounded sick. And exhausted.

"Alex! Thank God! Uh... I mean, it's good to hear from you. I mean, after all that... Um, that is..."

Knuckles made an impatient twirling motion with his hand, as if to say 'Get on with it.' Patrick cleared his throat before starting fresh.

"H-How are you?"

The voice on the other end was quiet and patient through all his ramblings, and when he finally managed to get out the 'How are you?' he was at first answered by a series of coughs, before she replied in a strained voice.

"Well, I'm a bit sick, as you can probably tell. But nothing I can't handle. Um, listen... my, uh, little brother said you stopped by today to return my bag and that you asked how I was doing. I'm sorry I wasn't able to talk to you myself, but I just wanted to call and thank you."

Patrick was relieved to hear that Sonny _did_ , in fact, tell her that he was there. He was worried that he'd upset the boy by addressing their parents. But it seemed that the kid kept his promise.

"Oh! Well, it was no problem, really. I was happy to do it. Uh, your little brother... Sonny... he said that you were really sick. And I guess, by that cough, I can tell that that's true. But uh..." Patrick lowered his voice, almost as if he was worried that someone might be listening into their conversation. "Alex... what happened to you?"

Alex gripped the phone tighter, as though this would let her hear him better. But also, she had a feeling she knew what he was getting at. It was a sensitive and dangerous subject; one, because it was too risky to let Patrick know about Sonic and Robotnik, for she had been trying ever so hard to keep their existence on the down-low (not to mention he'd likely not believe her), and two, because it might be dangerous to expose him to the knowledge of what was going on. For his own safety, he really shouldn't be in the know.

"What happened after you ran out and those guys chased you?'' asked Patrick. ''I'll be honest, I was really scared for you. Is... Is everything... okay?"

"Oh, um, well, I managed to outrun them. I, um, ran to the campus police. I guess when Sa— uh, when those two guys saw where I was going, they bailed. I told campus police what was going on, so they'll be on the lookout, I guess. So please, don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

Patrick supposed her explanation sounded reasonable enough, but if Knuckles was to be believed, none of it was true. But he guessed couldn't blame her for blatantly lying to him. Likely, Alex didn't want to reveal the fact that she'd been kidnapped by dangerous androids and taken to a super villain who was supposed to be fictitious. Why? Because it would sound ludicrous. Hell, Patrick knew it was the truth, and yet his mind _still_ didn't want to believe it. But the anthropomorphic echidna in his room suggested otherwise.

"Well, I'm very glad to hear that you got away safely. Those guys... they looked really dangerous."

Alex had nothing more to say on the matter of Sage and Stark, only a mere "Hmm." She hesitated, wondering if she should say more. Namely, _Where the hell's my Chaos Emerald? Did you take it?_ Why _did you take it?_ But that was not the right way to go about it. Maybe she could be more subtle, tell him something was missing from her bag and ask if he happened to...

_Oh, but then he'll want to know_ what _went missing from my bag, and I can't_ tell _him!_

Yet another voice in her head argued: _But odds are_ he's _the one who took it. So he'd know anyway!_

But she still couldn't flat out ask him like that. Not over the phone anyway. She needed to first find out if he truly had it, and if so, why he took it. And then she needed to see if she could get it back from him. The best way to do that was in person. So...

"Um, speaking of which, Patrick... I realize our, um, coffee thing..." She wasn't sure if it was _supposed_ to be a date, so she avoided the word, "... ya know, got ruined by those guys. So, I was wondering if maybe, when I'm feeling better and all, if you wanted to, you know, try again? It doesn't necessarily have to be coffee. It could be lunch or dinner or... uh..."

Alex ran a hand through her hair. Damn it. Why was this so nerve wracking?

_Now it sounds_ _like you're asking him out on a date,_ she thought. _You don't want to sound desperate, do you? Especially if that's not what he's looking for. He may just want to be friends. Not date. Stop where you are._

And so, she did, waiting with baited breath for his reply.

Patrick could feel his cheeks warming. And before he could stop himself, he blurted out, "That's wild! I was totally going to ask _you_ out on a date."

A date! He'd said it! And now, Alex could confirm that, yes, that's what coffee was supposed to be. "R-Really?" she stammered, blushing.

"Uh, that is," said Patrick, "Um... if... if you _want_ it to be... uh..."

Knuckles grit his teeth before mouthing to Patrick. 'Say yes! SAY YES!'

Patrick waved the echidna off, nodding. "I mean... Yeah, I'd love to."

Alex's cheeks were practically on fire. Chewing her lip, she tucked a still-damp strand of hair behind her ear. "Ha ha! Okay. Well, in the interest of adhering to gender stereotypes, Patrick, where would you like to go? You pick the place and we'll agree on a time."

"You want _me_ to pick?''

Wow, even when giving him the reigns, she was so take-charge and straightforward. And witty! Alex Parker really was the best. The more Patrick talked to Alex over the phone, the more he found himself smiling like a jackass. Talking to her just put the stupidest of grins on his face. This girl was great, even while she was sick. And what a damn trooper, trying to set up a date while she wasn't feeling her best. She was really something. He only wished he knew what Robotnik wanted with her!

"Okay. Well, I tell you what. To continue to adhere to gender stereotypes, I'll not only pick the place, but I'll cover the bill, too. I wouldn't feel right if I didn't. If you don't mind, that is."

Alex laughed. "Worry not. There's feminism and then there's just plain common sense. I can be a feminist and still allow the guy to pay for dinner. Why spend my money if I don't have to, right?"

"Ha ha! Right. As for where... um... Okay, have you ever been to that well-to-do place called 'The Veranda?' The one that's kinda popular with hipsters?'"

"Well," said Alex. "As I am neither well-to-do nor a hipster, I've never personally been there. Though I've always been curious. Everyone says it's really good. So, I'm game if you are."

Throughout all their talking, Alex had nearly forgotten the true reason for this date – grilling Patrick about why he took the Chaos Emerald and trying to get it back from him. If he was a possible thief, she really shouldn't be enjoying talking to him so much or be looking so forward to going out with him. But something about him... She just couldn't help liking him.

Patrick was grinning widely, much to Knuckles' annoyance. After all, this wasn't supposed to be a pleasure call. This should be business! Though if Patrick wanted this girl, Knuckles would certainly do everything he could to support him. But Patrick's constant grinning and occasional nervous stammering was making Knuckles' teeth grind.

"Great! That's great! Heh. Yeah, I think you're going to like it. I've been there a couple times and it _is_ really good. Maybe not _quite_ worth what they charge but..."

"Ask her why she had a Chaos Emerald and what happened to the other one she had!" Knuckles hissed irritably.

Patrick's eyes widened and he shook his head, mouthing _No!_ "Uhh... So, uh, yeah! Great! Um... I guess just let me know when you're feeling better and then we can work on the when."

"How about Friday?" asked Alex. "Tentatively, I mean."

After all, she needed to figure out why he took the Chaos Emerald and get it back as soon as possible. What if Robotnik and Sage and Stark went searching for it and it led them straight to Patrick? No way that adorable dork had the firepower to defend himself, and she couldn't afford to lose the Chaos Emerald. She'd really be letting Sonic down.

"If I'm not feeling better by then, we'll make other arrangements."

"Sure!" said Patrick. "Sounds good. It'll be nice to go there with someone who _isn't_ some blind date that one of my D&D friends set up for me."

Knuckles rolled his eyes and slapped a palm to his face.

Patrick winced. "Aaannd... I think I've officially said too much..."

"Uh, yeah... No one wants to hear about that, Patrick," said Alex. "Least of all the girl you're asking on a date. Last thing I need is some pressure to perform to the standards of your _first_ date. So do me a favor and _please_ tell me this bitch was ugly, or at least not as cute as me. Otherwise, I'm going to do the whole 'freak out and comparing myself to other girls' thing."

Patrick couldn't help but laugh at Alex's comments. God, Alex Parker was not only really funny, but she just made him feel... all sorts of ways. Simultaneously nervous and at ease. She was so easy to talk to that he didn't want to mess up a single thing. And this led to him letting another thought escape from his mind and out through his mouth.

"Oh, she was nowhere _close_ to being as cute as you."

Knuckles slid his hand away from his face, arching a brow at Patrick's rather bold comment. But afterwards, Patrick let out a nervous laugh.

"Heh heh... I mean, uh..."

"Hey, careful now... You want to be believable, don't you? You should've said I'm a little cuter, but have a much better personality."

Patrick smiled sheepishly. "Ha ha! R-Right. So yeah! Friday at 6:00 sounds great! Did you want me to pick you up, or...?"

At first Alex said, "Oh, sure—" But stopped abruptly. She hesitated, reconsidering her answer. "Actually, it's not that far. If the weather's nice I can just walk. Meet you there, you know?"

After all, she wasn't sure how many times she could risk Patrick showing up at her apartment. Eventually, he might ask to come in and she'd have to come up with excuses for why he couldn't. Sooner or later he might get suspicious.

"Okay. Yeah, sounds g—" Patrick got cut off by a coughing fit from Alex. "A-Are you okay?"

"Y-Yeah. Sorry about that. I should really get going, you know, drink some tea, and get some rest... all that jazz. So, if all goes well, I'll see you Friday, okay?"

"Yeah," said Patrick, smiling. "Rest up, Alex. Take it easy until then. I'll see you Friday. And Alex... uh... I'm, uh, glad you're okay. Be safe, alright?"

"Of course," she said, forcing herself to sound more confident than she felt. After all, how safe could she be when she was The Robotnik Empire's most wanted? Still, she didn't need Patrick getting suspicious. "See you Friday, Patrick. And thanks again! G'bye!"

Patrick wished her goodbye in turn and hung up. Then, he plopped onto his back on the bed, letting out a relieved sigh. "Oh man... I actually did it."

Knuckles hopped onto the bed beside him and nudged him in the side. "Actually, _she_ did it, but it's close enough. You're _in_ , Patrick! Now you can win her over during your meal, make her your girl, and then..."

"And then?" Patrick asked nervously.

Knuckles' expression grew serious as he pounded his fists together. "And then you can ask her all about Robotnik, the androids, and the Chaos Emeralds! We can finally know the truth about everything!"

Patrick sighed. "Yeah... right. That's... that's what I aim to do."

Knuckles grinned at Patrick, nudging him once more. "Hey. I know you're nervous. But don't worry. If you want, maybe we can find a way to be in contact during your date. I can walk you through the _whole_ thing! With me helping you out, she'll be _madly_ in love with you in no time!"

Patrick had nothing to say, other than a small nervous laugh.

"Heh... heh..."

***

Alex had just ended the call with Patrick when there was a knock at her door. "C-Come in," she called nervously, as though she'd almost been caught doing something scandalous.

It was Sonic with a tray of soup in hand.

"Tea and now _soup?_ " asked Alex, a smile tugging at her lips. "Wow. What'd I do to deserve such great room service from blue blur himself?"

Sonic offered her a small smile. "Well, I just wanted to make it up to you, ya know?" He slipped inside and closed the door with his foot to give them some privacy.

Alex's eyes were bright, though heavily-lidded, and she still looked a little too pale for anyone's liking. "I'm not mad at you, if that's what this is about," she said as he placed the tray on her lap. "Ya know, for the whole 'Sonny' thing. I called Mom after my shower and... well, I backed your story. There wasn't much else I could do. I'll handle the fallout later, as it comes. Wouldn't be the first time I fibbed to my mom. I'll figure something out."

She patted the mattress next to her, indicating that he could join her. It did look very comfy, with that big purple comforter and all those plush decorative pillows, most which were being used to prop Alex into a sitting position.

Grinning, Sonic hopped onto the bed beside her. For a moment, couldn't help but look at Alex, sitting there in her comfy bed, her hair looking really nice after a hot shower. Then, he cleared his throat and averted his gaze.

"Alex, I wanted to talk about something. Something kinda serious."

Alex's smile fell. "Uh... am I in trouble?" she asked with a nervous laugh.

Sonic did his best to put her at ease with a smirk. "No way. Especially not now. Not as long as _I'm_ here." Though his smirk slipped a little bit before he plunged forward. "Alex, we should talk about what's happened. I mean, you kinda spilled all the beans in a feverish ramble last night, so I basically know what's going on, but I think we really oughta talk about it."

"I really don't even remember what all I said to you," she said, averting her gaze and rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly.

Sonic lowered his gaze for a moment, staring at the comforter as he tried to find the right words to start this off. He hated having serious conversations. He'd rather remain upbeat and lighthearted. But this was necessary.

"Alex, you should have told me about Robotnik. I overheard you talking to Patrick about your 'stalker' that one night. You really... Well, you should have told me!"

Alex beheld him with wide eyes, then averted her gaze and chewed her lip nervously. "You heard that, huh?" She lowered her head, her hair falling into her eyes. "I-I know. You're right. I'm sorry. It's just... he threatened my mom. Somehow... _somehow_ he found out about her. He knows _everything_ about me, just short of where I live. Thank God I never updated my ID. He basically said he'd pay Mom a 'visit' if I didn't keep things between me and him. I guess I thought I was protecting her. And..." She let out a long sigh. "I guess I thought I was protecting _you_ , too. I thought if I told you, you'd go off half-cocked and do something rash and get yourself abducted by the military."

Sonic frowned. He hadn't meant to upset her over the whole matter.

"Alex..."

"But that was stupid of me," she said. "If it hadn't been for Tails, I might have been his prisoner forever, and you'd have never known where to look for me. The whole time, I just kept thinking, 'Sonic will rescue me,' only to remember that you wouldn't because you _couldn't_. And it was my own stupid fault." She buried her face into her hands. "God, I'm so stupid. To think I could've done it all on my own. I'm sorry, Sonic. I'm so, so sorry."

Sonic placed his hand on her shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Hey, hey! Look, it's okay. I mean, this isn't exactly something that you're used to handling. Fighting mad scientist super villains isn't exactly a job for a gold medal diver." Sonic grinned widely, getting a little carried away. "I'm really proud of you for that, by the way. You were great at that swimming contest!" Sonic's eyes went wide as he realized what he'd just said. "Which... I definitely wasn't there to see," he added quickly.

Alex, however, seemed pleased. "R-Really?" she said, her eyes sparkling. "You came to watch me swim? Oh, Sonic... That's so sweet!" She almost threw her arms around him, but stopped just short of spilling her soup.

Sonic couldn't help but grin when he saw the way she lit up at the idea that he had actually come to watch her swim meet. That was an expression that he would do everything to see on Alex's face as often as possible.

"Uh... I mean, you shouldn't have done that," she said, picking up her spoon and taking a long, slow sip of soup. "What if you'd been spotted?" But try as she might, she couldn't hide her smile.

Sonic waved his hand and let out a "Pfft. I'm getting a lot of mileage in your cousin's clothes."

Alex suppressed a snort. If only Liam knew...

"Also, I was hiding under the bleachers. I don't know, I just really wanted to see you do what you do so well. You were practicing so hard for that meet and I wanted to support you."

Alex finished slurping her soup and grinned at him. "If I wasn't sick, I'd kiss you, Sonic."

Sonic felt his cheeks warming. At that moment that he really wished Alex wasn't sick. But with a sigh, he continued. "I came back here afterwards. But with everything that happened, I kinda wished I'd followed you and Patrick."

Alex frowned and placed a hand on his head. "Hey... don't start feeling bad. It wasn't _your_ fault. It was mine. We already established that. But I hope you know why I did it. I was worried he'd hurt Mom. But now that I think about it... Well, I was trying to protect _you_ , too. My intentions were good, but also stupid. I realize in my effort to 'protect' you from the big bad military/alien scenario, I've been treating you like a child. You're this cute little ball of energy, almost like my stuffed doll came to life, and sometimes I forget you're not just... Well, you're not just a cute little character I need to protect. You're almost my age, and you've been through a lot. Certainly, more than _I_ ever have. I should have trusted you." Alex lowered her gaze, her hair falling into her eyes again. "I'm... sorry, Sonic."

Sonic had seen enough of Alex being upset. He reached his hand toward her face and pushed her hair out of her eyes with his gloved fingers. Her eyes were wide with surprise at this gesture.

"Alex... It's time we start having full trust in each other. No more secrets. From now on, when there's trouble, we've got each other's backs. What do you say?"

Alex nodded. "Okay. If you promise not to let yourself get captured by the military (and preferably not spotted), I promise to be less protective of you and trust _you_ to protect _me_ from now on."

"I promise,'' he said with that trademark grin. ''You can count on me, Alex! No matter what. We're in this together."

Alex took another slow sip of soup and closed her eyes, making a contented sound in the back of her throat. "Mmm... I know this is just canned soup, but somehow this tastes so much better because _you_ made it."

Sonic grinned. "Well I guess it's a special occurrence. How often do you get your meal made by a fictional video game character, let alone a hero from another world?"

She smiled at him before finishing the rest of her soup and setting it aside on her bedside table. Then, yawning sleepily, she snuggled down underneath the covers and closed her eyes. She looked strangely content. Or perhaps not so strangely. After all, they seemed to have reached a new level to their friendship. One of trust.

"Oh, I have good news," she said sleepily. "I called Patrick. We're going on a date this Friday."

Sonic's smile slowly faded. "Oh. Uh, that's cool."

"I'll be able to ask him about the Chaos Emerald, and hopefully get it back. Won't that be great?" She let out another long yawn. "One less thing we need to worry about."

"Y-Yeah. Yeah, that would be great. After all, it could be dangerous for him to be holding onto something like that. He shouldn't... mess with things... he has no business being with." Sonic glanced down at Alex, now snuggled down beneath the covers, looking at her with a concerned expression. Once more, his fingers found their way into her hair.

Alex was already falling into a light doze when he began caressing her hair. She smiled in her sleep. "Mmm,'' she murmured contentedly. ''That feels nice, Sonic. You know, in some ways you're just like how I imagined you. But in other ways... you're very different."

Sonic grinned nervously. "That a good thing or a bad thing?"

Alex snuggled up against him, wrapping her arm around him as though he were her plushie. In fact, he had to wonder if perhaps in her sleepy stupor she _did_ think him her plushie.

"A good thing," she breathed. "Everything about you... is good..." And just like that, he was trapped in her embrace, being cuddled the way she might have cuddled that doll when she was a little girl.

"A-Alex...?"

Oh boy... She was out of it. And she'd trapped him in her arms. Sure, he could easily escape, but... did he want to? On one hand, this could make for a potentially boring day. And yet, was it really so bad?

Alex only had one thing left to say before she fell into a deep sleep. "Sonic... what if Robotnik comes for me? I'm... still... a little... scared..." But whatever he said in reply would be a promise made to her subconscious, for she was fast asleep.

Sonic wiggled in closer to her and let her cuddle him as much as she wanted. He reached up, running his fingers through her short, purple-tipped waves as his big green eyes looked over her dozing face, seeing the twinge of worry there.

"I won't let him, Alex, he whispered softly. ''If that Eggman wants you, he'll have to go through me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Five more chapters to go! Keep a weather eye!


	23. Chapter 23

The week seemed to breeze by. By midweek, Alex was more or less fully recovered from her cold, and early Friday evening she was preparing for her date. She stood in her bedroom, still wearing the jeans and T-shirt she'd worn to classes that day, but her closet door was open and there was a pile of clothes on the bed. Tails was sitting on the edge of the bed, offering her moral support as she prepared for her date with Patrick.

"So... this is kind of embarrassing to admit, especially at my age, but I've never actually been on a real date before. I seriously don't know what to wear!" Alex continued to rifle through her closet, tossing clothes onto the bed. "Like, I want to look nice, you know? But I don't wanna look like I'm trying too hard. How nice is too nice? Oh, but I don't wanna look too _casual_ either. Then he might think I don't care. Oh man... this is hard!"

Tails sat on the edge of Alex's bed, his red and white sneakers kicking absently. "Well, I'm happy to help out, Alex. Though, I'll be honest... I've never been on a date, either. I wouldn't really know what the best thing to wear is. Are you sure you wouldn't rather have Sonic help you out with this? I mean, he might have a better knowledge of what looks good on a girl."

Alex tilted her head thoughtfully. "Hmm... Yeah, I guess so. I just thought maybe you'd like to help. I know Sonic and I have been friends for a while, so I didn't want you to feel left out. We're still getting to know each other, too, right?" She gave Tails a sweet smile and ruffled his hair.

The fox boy's fluffy dual appendages waved and wagged. Although he suggested passing the task off onto Sonic, he was pleased that Alex requested his help with this. If one thing could be said, Tails always wanted to be as helpful as possible.

"Though..." she said thoughtfully. "I guess Sonic _is_ more age appropriate. Maybe he'd have some good insight. But I don't know if he'd want to be bothered with _this_ sorta thing, you know?"

Tails shrugged, smiling. "I mean, _I'm_ always happy to help in any way I can. I promise to do my best."

Alex rummaged around in the back of her closet and emerged with a black cocktail dress. "Wow. I haven't worn this since my Aunt Edith's wedding. What do you think?"

Tails tilted his head. "I don't think it's bad. Maybe... something with more color?"

"Too dark. Noted. Honestly, it's the only dress I own. I'm not a 'dress' sort of girl. What about a skirt?"

She picked up two skirts from the bed. One was long, white and lacy, and the other was short and pleated with a black and purple plaid pattern.

"What do you think? The long one or the short one?"

Tails brought a hand to his fuzzy cheek, rubbing it in contemplation. "I think... the short one. Do you like that one? Is that a good choice?"

Alex laughed. "You sound so uncertain. Stick to your guns, Tails. If you like it, say it with confidence."

"O-Oh... Okay! Then... you should wear the short purple one!"

Alex held the skirt up to herself and stood in front of the mirror. "Hmm... I guess it _does_ match my hair... the purple and all." Grinning, she nodded to herself. "It's sexy _and_ sporty. Good choice, Tails."

Tails let out a sigh a relief. "Phew... Thank goodness. You're right Alex. This _is_ hard. I'll take modifying and repairing the Tornado or hacking into a security system any day."

Alex tossed the skirt onto a place of pride on the bed. "Now it's time for tops!"

And the process repeated until two tops were selected.

"Okay, these are the two finalists," said Alex. "We've got the black off-the-shoulders sweater, and the white knit sweater with the sailor collar. Which one's best?"

Tails brought his hand to his chin, thinking hard. "Uhm... Uuuuhh..."

"The black one, obviously," said a voice from the doorway.

Alex spun around. "Oh! Sonic! Hey."

The hedgehog stood in the doorway with his arms crossed. "The white one is cute, but it really doesn't suit the skirt at all."

"Uh... you sure?" asked Alex. "I mean, I was worried maybe it was too much black?"

Sonic shook his head. "Nah. Besides... the bare shoulder look is one any guy would be dumb not love."

Alex blushed. And then, realizing she was blushing over something _Sonic_ said, she blushed even deeper out of embarrassment. She hoped he wouldn't notice. She tilted her head as she swapped the shirts back and forth over top the chosen skirt on the bed.

"Hmm... You're right. The black _does_ look better. Okay, yeah! This could work! I think I have the perfect shoes to go with it! And I know just how to do my makeup!" She turned towards the doorway and gave Sonic a big smile. "Thanks, Sonic! Wouldn't have pegged you for a fashion guy. You're way better at this than me."

"It's not so much fashion. It's just I know 'cool' when I see it."

"Can't argue with logic like that, Alex," said Tails in agreement.

Smiling, Alex shooed the fox boy off the bed. "Okay, you... scoot. I've gotta get changed."

"Okay. I hope I was helpful!"

"You bet, Tails! Thanks!"

Tails hopped off the bed and flew out the room, but not before hesitating in the doorway. "Sonic, you coming?"

"In a minute, li'l bro..." Tails nodded and was on his way. Sonic, however, lingered. "So," he said, arms still crossed. "You really wanna look good for him, huh?"

Alex averted her gaze and tucked a stray hair behind her ear self-consciously. "W-Well, I mean... it's my first date. I know, I know!" she said, lifting a hand as though warding off a shocked response. "It's crazy at my age, right? I'm so inexperienced. I never dated in high school. So I just... ya know..." She tugged on her hair and chewed her lip, tapping her foot on the floor behind her. "... wanted to make a good impression," she mumbled bashfully.

Sonic watched her nervous shuffling. This girl... she was so cute. He really hoped for her sake that Patrick wasn't, in truth, just some creep. After all, he _did_ take the Chaos Emerald from her duffle bag.

"I sure hope this date is a good idea. I'm not trying to discourage you, Alex. I want you to go and enjoy yourself. But with Robotnik out there planning who-knows-what... are you sure going out on this date is a good idea?"

For a brief moment Sonic saw a frightened look flash across her face as her body gave a momentary flicker. But it quickly passed and she waved him off with a nervous laugh.

"I'm sure it'll be fine," she said. "Though, that reminds me..." Alex went to her nightstand and opened the drawer. Then, she tossed something to him. It was a smartphone, just like the one she was always carrying. Only this one was a slick cobalt blue.

"Huh? What's this for?"

"That's for you," she said with a smile. "Unfortunately, I couldn't really afford to get you unlimited minutes, but so long as you use it sparingly, we can keep in touch in case of emergency situations. Here, I'll show you how to use it."

Alex hunkered down beside him and put her name and number in the contacts section of the phone. Then she showed him how to text her.

"See? So if Robotnik _were_ to show up, I'd just text you and you could come rescue me and save the day, yeah? Oh! Here!"

She took the phone from him again and held it out in front of them. She tilted the side of her head against his, smiling up at the phone as she snapped their picture. Then, with a few swipes of her finger across the screen, she handed the phone back to Sonic and he saw that their picture was now his phone background. He hadn't the time to make a proper expression, so the picture had her smiling and him gazing up with an expression of awe on his face.

"There," she said. "Now you've got your first selfie with your second-best friend, right?"

With that, she gave him a kiss on the cheek which sent a shock through his whole system. Then, she spun him around and pushed him gently out of the room, closing the door behind him. For a moment, Sonic just stood outside her door, listening to her humming and singing to herself as she got dressed for her date.

Sonic gazed down at the picture of he and Alex on his new phone. A grin spread a across his face as he brought his fingers to his cheek. "Heh heh..."

He returned to the couch in the living room where Tails was sitting in front of the TV, resuming his play-through of classic Sonic video games. Sonic reclined on the sofa, looking at the picture of he and Alex together. He couldn't help but smile, even though he looked like such a dope in the picture. Still, it was a picture of he and her together. The only one that existed. And it was his. And this phone was his; a gift given to him from Alex. It was like the one she had. That way, she could get a hold of him if she needed his help. So, she needed him after all! His chest swelled with a lighthearted feeling.

Finally, Alex stepped out of the bedroom, dressed in her plaid mini skirt that matched her hair, the black off-the-shoulders sweater, and a pair of black over-the-knee boots. She'd even done her makeup. Alex _never_ wore makeup. She didn't really need it, but it _did_ look kind of nice. Sonic and Tails glanced in her direction as she gave them a little twirl.

"Well," she said, clutching the strap of her cross-body satchel purse as she turned in a slow circle for Tails and Sonic to appraise her. "Whatdya think? Will it suffice for a first date?"

Sonic sat perched on the back of the couch with his mouth agape. Tails hopped up from the floor and lifted into the air, flying a slow circle around Alex as though to get a good look from every angle.

"Wow, Alex. You look really pretty! Doesn't she, Sonic?"

Sonic blinked, still looking dumbstruck. "Uh... Y-Yeah! Yeah, you look really... pretty."

Alex blushed at their compliments, particularly Sonic's, whom she noticed looked particularly dumbstruck. She laughed as she grabbed Tails out of the air gave him a quick snuggle.

"A hug for good luck, okay? I have to admit... I _am_ a little nervous. Anyway..." she said, tucking that strand of hair behind her ear. "There's some soda and leftover pizza in the fridge. Not very adventurous, I know, but I'll cook you guys something good tomorrow to make up for it. Um... what else...?" She glanced at her phone, seeing the time and her eyes widened. "Crap! I'm gonna be late! I'll see you guys later, okay? Love you!" And with that, she was out the door and on her way.

Tails gazed at the door after her, grinning widely. "Awww! Didya hear that, Sonic? She said she loves us!" With a childlike giggle, Tails plopped himself back down in front of the TV and took up the controller once more. "That Patrick sure is lucky guy, huh, Sonic?"

Sonic glanced at Tails, his eyes narrowing. Then, he looked back at the picture of he and Alex once more before hitting the button on the side, turning off the screen.

"Tails, turn that game off! We're going out!"

***

The Veranda wasn't far from campus, but Alex nonetheless jogged part of the way there, worried that she'd be late. Patrick was probably there already. And if she was _too_ late, he might think she stood him up. She didn't want that.

However, when she was halfway there, she realized if she continued to run, she might break out into a sweat, and that just wouldn't do. She needed to look her best for her date. What an embarrassment if she showed up all sweaty and smelly, especially in such nice clothes. So, Alex instead opted for walking briskly.

At first, her mind was full of excitement with just a hint of nervousness for the date. But gradually her thoughts began to stray to what Sonic had said earlier.

_'With Robotnik out there, planning who-knows-what... are you sure going out on this date is a good idea?'_

Alex slowed her stride, chewing her lip. Clutching the strap of her bag, she glanced around nervously. What if Sage and Stark were following her right now? Shivering, she began to walk a little faster. At one point she thought she heard a rustling in some nearby bushes and broke out into a trot. When she finally arrived at The Veranda, she was gasping for breath.

The Veranda was so named for the nature of its venue. It was a good-weather eatery only, due to the fact that it was an al fresco dining experience. A small building with a huge, decorative patio with wrought iron tables and chairs and a garden trellis above, abundant with vines and flowers, it was a rather idyllic spot. Maybe, it might even be almost _too_ romantic. Alex chewed her lip and tucked a stray hair behind her ear as her eyes nervously scanned the place for Patrick.

Patrick had already arrived ahead of time and secured a table, ordering himself only a glass of water while he waited. Although he appeared to be by himself, Patrick was hardly alone. He wore a Bluetooth mobile device in his ear so he could keep in contact with a certain crimson-hued guardian who was watching from a hidden location on the premises. In a low tone, Patrick spoke into the ear-piece.

"I'm not gonna lie. I'm kinda nervous, man."

On the other end, Knuckles spoke into the phone Patrick had loaned him so they could be in constant contact. "Don't you worry about a thing, Patrick. You just do what I say, and you'll be fine."

"Are you sure about this? I mean, I think I could—"

"She's here!"

Patrick quickly glanced around. "What? Where?"

"Far left... In the black and purple. That's her right?"

Patrick looked where Knuckles directed him. Sure enough...

"W-Wow..."

Alex spotted a hand waving in the air. It was Patrick. And he was...

_Wow._

He was dressed quite nicely. Almost... too nice. He was wearing a dark gray suit with a white dress shirt and a red and blue diagonal striped tie. His hair was slightly moussed back, as opposed the usual tousled look it had.

Alex blushed, wondering if perhaps she hadn't dressed fancy enough, and further wondering if this was already getting a little _too_ serious. But he _did_ look good. She couldn't begrudge him _that_. With a nervous smile, she weaved her way through the tables and met him at his.

"H-Hey," she said, trying not to sound too breathless. "Uh... nice tie."

For a moment, Patrick merely gaped at her. She was wearing such a cute outfit! He was so entranced that it took him an extra second to realize she'd complimented his tie.

"Oh! Uh, thanks. It was my dad's."

"Pull out her chair for her."

"Huh?"

The voice in his ear repeated, "Pull out her chair!"

"Oh! Here, let me..." Patrick rose from his seat and pulled Alex's chair out for her.

"Oh! Thanks," she said, taking a seat.

"You look really nice, Alex! I almost didn't recognize you."

Alex raised an eyebrow and her lips quirked slightly. Poor choice of wording on his part, but she knew what he meant. She could tell he was nervous, and that was okay. She was nervous, too.

"Well, that's not true," he amended quickly. "I did recognize you. But—"

"Just tell her she looks nice," Knuckles hissed in his ear.

"Uh, that is... You look really nice, Alex. Really."

Patrick already had a sinking feeling in his stomach. He was trying so hard to not mess things up, but he was horribly stammering over his words just to tell Alex that she looked nice. But it was over and done with. What was said was said. He'd just have to push forward.

Alex smiled. "Thanks. You, too, Patrick. I'm flattered you got so dressed up for me." _Though I wish you hadn't slicked back your hair,_ she thought. _I like it the way it normally is._ But she didn't tell him this, of course.

Patrick picked up one of the menus and handed it to Alex. "They've got really good food here. Oh, and don't worry about price or anything. I've got it covered."

He flipped open his own menu and began looking through it, but his eyes continued to flick back to Alex. She really did look good. She was wearing make-up, a sexy off-the-shoulder sweater, a cute skirt, those high boots... He never would've thought that Alex even owned an outfit like this.

"I'm, uh... I'm glad you're feeling better," he said, trying desperately to make conversation. "That cough seems to have gone away, huh?"

"Oh, yeah. I've got a pretty solid immune system. I mean, I get sick easily, but it never lasts long. I guess that's the payoff."

There was a moment of awkward silence where neither of them seemed to have anything to say.

_What the hell? She was so easy to talk to, before. Why is it so hard, now?_

Alex continued to scan her menu, trying to think of something to say. This was hard. Why was it so hard? It had been so easy talking to him on the bus, in his car, at the coffee shop and over the phone. Why should now be any different? And yet... it was.

_Come on, Alex... Think of something. ANYTHING!_

Then, it occurred to her; the real reason she'd originally called him and asked him if he'd like to go out – the Chaos Emerald.

"So..." she said, trying to sound casual as she continued to peruse the menu. "I hope Sonny didn't give you a hard time or anything, ya know, when you returned my duffle bag. He can be a bit... difficult... with strangers." There. At least that was an opening to the duffle bag and, eventually, _hopefully_ , the Chaos Emerald.

"Oh. Oh, no, it's fine, really. It's just, I think he might've been a little harsh with me because..." Patrick gazed down at the table, chewing his lip. "Uh... I asked him why your parents weren't around to take care of you." He brought a hand up and rubbed the back of his neck. "I had no idea that your mom was sick and your dad... uhm... yeah..."

Alex glanced up from her menu again. Her eyes were large, almost too large. "L-Look," she said, forcing a smile. "Don't worry about it. You couldn't have known." She buried her face in her menu once more. _Damn it, Sonic... Couldn't you have been a bit more tactful?_

Patrick still felt awful about the whole thing, and the sigh she let out as she gazed at her menu told him she did, too. They didn't seem to be off to a very good start on their date. He had to do something to make it better. Hopefully, Knuckles would have some good advice, but the earpiece had been silent for a while.

Not far from where they sat, hiding in some decorative shrubbery around the exterior of the al fresco eatery, Sonic and Tails were crouched, Sonic dressed in the same red hoodie and jeans that belonged to Liam, while Tails was wearing a beanie hat that was definitely too large for his head, and an oversized T-shirt that Sonic had gotten out of the box of things that belonged to Alex's dad. They couldn't quite hear what was being said, but Sonic was trying his best to interpret body language.

"She looks like she's hiding behind her menu. She looks distressed. It must be going awful for her, Tails!"

"Well, she _did_ say she was nervous. Maybe that's all it is."

Sonic watched as a waitress came to their table. "Maybe once they order some food, things will start going better. I know that sometimes _I_ get cranky when I haven't had a chili dog yet."

" _I'm_ getting kinda hangry right now, to be honest," Tails grumbled.

They continued to watch Alex and Patrick from the shrubbery. All and all, it was pretty boring.

"How long do we have to spy on them, Sonic?" Tails asked, rubbing his backside. "This shirt is chafing my tails."

Elsewhere, on a high perch atop the roof of the single small building which housed The Veranda's kitchen, Knuckles watched the proceedings.

"Alright, Patrick. Small talk isn't working. Proceed to the next step. Order her food for her."

Patrick glanced over his shoulder, almost questioningly, despite the fact that their waitress was already at their table chatting them up.

"Order her food for her," Knuckles repeated. "Girls love it when guys do things for them. So, do that!"

When the waitress asked Alex for her order, Patrick piped up. "We'll both have the chicken and shrimp alfredo with side salads! Uh, please."

Knuckles grinned from his perch. "Perfect!"

Alex frowned. That wasn't what she wanted, but she supposed if Patrick was paying for it – _and_ it was pricey – that she hadn't the opportunity to argue. Still, it seemed uncharacteristically assumptive, and she wasn't so sure she liked this side of him.

The waitress stared at Patrick for a moment before arching an eyebrow at Alex as though silently asking if they were serious with this macho shit. Alex gave her an exasperated smile and shrugged.

"Looks like I'm on a date with Christian Grey," she said with just a hint of sarcasm in her tone as her eyes flicked irritably back to Patrick. "I guess I'm having what he's having," she sighed.

Patrick already felt this going wrong. He saw the irritable look that Alex had shot him. _And_ she'd just called him Christian Grey! He was nothing like that creep! Why had Knuckles told him to order her food? And why had he been foolish enough to listen?

In the bushes, Sonic's eyes narrowed. "I think he just ordered her food for her. Didn't even let her choose! Hold on, I'm moving closer."

"B-But Sonic," Tails stammered. "Alex told us not to-- Sonic!" he hissed. But Sonic was already pushing his way through the shrubbery, moving closer so he could hear better. Tails chewed his lip nervously as he remained hunkered behind the bushes.

Patrick swallowed nervously, searching desperately for something to say before things got worse. However, the voice in his ear spoke up again.

"What's wrong with this girl? That always works back home!"

Patrick brought a hand to the side of his face and rubbed the ear that had the Bluetooth in it. "Uh... I just... that stuff is really good and... Well, I thought you'd like it."

"Well, maybe you're right," said Alex calmly, though inside she was feeling rather upset. "But, to be quite frank, I don't actually like alfredo sauce. It's too thick. It triggers my gag reflex. It's just... You shouldn't make assumptions like that. I mean, what was even the point in telling me not to worry about the price of things if you weren't going to let me choose anyway?"

Patrick could already see that listening to Knuckles' 'advice' was a bad idea. Ordering for her hadn't sounded like a good idea from the start, and yet, he was so nervous that he did it anyway. Patrick felt his mouth going dry.

_Damn it, Knuckles! Some advice you've got!_

He opened his mouth to say something, to attempt to smooth things over, but Alex just raised and hand and waved him off.

"Look, don't worry about it, okay? Order's already placed. Maybe I can scrape some of the sauce off. I'm sure it'll still taste... fine."

Alex just didn't get it. Patrick had always seemed so nice, if a little uncertain of himself. And even _that_ she'd found endearing. She never would've pegged him for the type of guy who'd order food _for_ his date. But maybe that was who he _really_ was. Maybe everything else had all just been an act. This thought hurt Alex deeply, and on top of that, it angered her. Because if he _was_ that type of guy, then maybe Sonic was right... Maybe Patrick really _did_ steal the Chaos Emerald. Originally, Alex had intended to broach the subject tactfully, but now she decided to forego that approach and ask him point blank.

"Look, Patrick... I was trying to find a way to ask you this, but I figure there's no time like the present." She narrowed her eyes at him. "Something was missing from my duffle bag when you returned it. Why did you steal it?"

Patrick's eyes went wide. He couldn't find the words. The emerald! She was talking about the emerald that she had in her bag!

_'It was Knuckles! He wanted me to give it to him!'_ he wanted to say. But then, something else occurred to him. She was making it sound as if this was the main reason why she wanted to get together with him. Patrick's look of panic turned to a look of hurt.

"Wait... is... is that what this is about? This whole date? Is this just a pretense so you could accuse me of taking something from you?"

Knuckles, in Patrick's earpiece, had a response of his own. "The gall of this girl!" Of course, not mentioning the fact that, yes, they _did_ take the emerald, and Knuckles wanted Patrick to ask Alex out so he could interrogate _her_.

"W-What?" stammered Alex. "N-No! Of course not! I mean... Yes, I needed to ask you, but I _did_ want go on a date with you. At least, I _thought_ I did. Before I realized you were a thief and a controlling—"

"You know what, Patrick?" Knuckles growled in his ear, "Enough fun and games! Ask her about the androids!"

Patrick, barely even hearing Knuckles, was already on the same page. "If you're going to just grill me like that, then maybe two can play at that game. I was really worried about you the other day. So, why did you blatantly lie to me about going to campus police when those guys were following you when I clearly _saw_ that they chased you into the woods? Why did you lie to me about the fact that you were kidnapped?"

Perhaps Patrick wasn't thinking it through carefully, for he said this loudly enough that their conversation was now drawing attention from nearby patrons; one in particular, sitting not too far away, wearing a suit and tie beneath a black trench coat. His auburn hair was pulled back into a tidy ponytail. Slowly, he turned his head, his eyes alight with mischief as he listened to their conversation with a roguish grin.

Alex's eyes were growing ever wider in her gradually paling face. "I-I... I didn't..."

"What's going on, Alex? How did you escape?"

Tears welled in Alex's eyes. This date was a disaster. Patrick thought she was some sort of snob! He thought she was using him. And yet _he_ was the one who stole the Chaos Emerald! And he knew things! Thing he shouldn't know.

"H-How could you know that?" she demanded. "How could you p-possibly... H-Have you been spying on me?!"

"S-Spying? What? No! I—"

Alex rose shakily to her feet. "Y-You s-stay away from me, Patrick Miller. You just s-stay..." Whatever else she'd intended to say was drowned out by her tears as she rubbed a fist to her eyes and sobbed.

This was officially the worst of the three dates Patrick had ever had at The Veranda. And he was certain he would never come back to this place again, especially after making the girl he liked more than anything break into tears.

"N-No... A-Alex! I..."

Sonic had heard enough. He leapt out from behind the shrubbery and, in a speedy blue blur, zipped up to their table.

Just when Alex thought she had never been more humiliated in her life, the situation got exponentially worse. Sonic had revealed himself... Out in the open!

"I knew it!" he exclaimed. "I knew it all along!"

Patrick leapt from his seat, his eyes going wide at the sound of that voice. He looked down, recognizing that familiar red hoodie, that small stature, those shoes... but not the face that was glaring up at him. Or, actually, he _did_ recognize it, which made it all the more alarming.

"You can't talk to Alex like that, you no good, thieving sleaze! She's the nicest girl in the whole damn world and you're nothing but a lousy creep!"

Patrick knew the face that was glaring up at him. But with everything that was happening, he couldn't get the words out to properly react. But two things were for sure: That was _no_ mask, and this was _not_ Alex's little brother.

"Sonic!" Alex hissed in a panic.

"S-Sonic??"

"SONIC!?!?" Knuckles shouted into the Bluetooth device, causing it to let out a high-pitched squawk in Patrick's ear.

"DAAHH!!" Patrick cried out and tumbled back into his seat, knocking the Bluetooth off.

As if Sonic's appearance didn't make this all bad enough, the diners at The Veranda were soon treated to the sight of a crimson creature soaring over their heads from the roof of The Veranda's kitchen. It landed right in front of Alex and Patrick, and unlike Sonic, no craps were given about a disguise for him.

There he was, the echidna guardian of Angel Island, in plain sight, standing slightly taller and thicker bodied than Sonic, suggesting formidable strength in a small package, and with large boxing-glove fists, each with a pair of spikes protruding from the backs.

"K-Knuckles!" Patrick stammered.

"Knuckles!?" said Sonic, tilting his head inquisitively.

"The hedgehog!" shouted Knuckles.

"Shit," said Alex, slapping a hand to her face.

The way Sonic just looked bemusedly at him, as though uncertain of how to react to his sudden appearance, just annoyed the echidna all the more. Gnashing his teeth, Knuckles clenched his large fists.

"So... you _are_ here! Then somehow all of this... MUST BE YOUR FAULT!

"Hey, what!? Come on, Knuckles... WHOA!"

Knuckles lunged at Sonic, throwing a boulder-like fist toward him. But Sonic spun into the air, easily dodging the echidna's punch.

"Knuckles! I didn't know you were here, too! How are ya, buddy?"

"I am NOT your buddy!" Knuckles shouted as he launched into the air at Sonic. "The moment I found myself on this alien planet... somehow I knew... I _knew_ I'd find _you_ here, too!"

Alex watched helplessly as Sonic and Knuckles got into fisticuffs over a perceived misunderstanding by Knuckles that it was Sonic's fault that they were all stuck here.

_Typical,_ thought Alex in exasperation. _Freakin' typical._

And yet, under other circumstances, she would have totally been geeking out to see the two going at it. But not now. Certainly not now. Knuckles was fully exposed, as though he didn't give a crap. And Sonic's hood had fallen off, revealing his face to _everyone._ And they were fighting in the middle of The Veranda!

Sonic continued to zip around, dodging Knuckles' punches. The echidna, however, plowed his way through people's tables, knocking patrons out of their chairs and sending meals flying. Patrick's shoulders slumped, his face dreadfully pale.

"Oh God... This is the worst day of my life..."

"C'mon, Knuckle-head! Chill out! None of this is _my_ fault... WHOAA!!!" Sonic just barely dodged a chair that was thrown at him.

"LIES!" shouted Knuckles. "Everything bad that happens is _always_ , somehow, _your_ fault!"

Patrick looked as if he was ready to just end his life right where it was. There was no way to recover from a humiliation this dreadful. His first _actual_ date with a girl that he _actually_ liked was turning into a disaster of accusations and destroyed trust. And then, the echidna he'd been hiding in his apartment was having a fight, in public, with the hedgehog that Alex had apparently been harboring, making an absolute mess of the restaurant where they were supposed to be having a nice date.

Everything had gone to hell...

And it was all Knuckles' fault.

But while Patrick was lamenting the worst day of his life, Alex was already thinking fast on how to possibly mitigate this disaster. Maybe it was stupid. Perhaps unbelievable. But it was the only thing she could think of.

Alex took out her phone and held it sideways. Then, nudging Patrick in the ribs – for, clearly, he was in cahoots with Knuckles and, like her, realized the seriousness of the situation – she began swiping her fingers across her phone screen.

"Ha! Nice try, Patrick!" she loudly proclaimed, pretending to be controlling 'Sonic' with her phone. "But Sonic _always_ beats Knuckles! I've got you now!"

"W-What? What are you...? O-Oh! Y-Yeah!" Patrick reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone and began treating it like a controller for Knuckles. And then, intentionally loudly, Patrick called out, "Oh yeah? I'll show _you_ who beats who!"

Alex breathed a silent sigh of relief as Patrick quickly picked up on her scheme and began 'playing' with her. Meanwhile, Sonic continued to zip around, easily dodging all of Knuckles' punches, but making no attempt to attack back. He wasn't actually interested in fighting Knuckles. He was just letting the echidna blow off steam, the way he always did. Knuckles, however, seemed intent on beating Sonic to a pulp. And the whole time, the man who had been secretly watching them from his table in the corner just sat there grinning.

Knuckles, meanwhile, was throwing punches, chairs, and showing complete disregard for collateral damage. And there was no way to stop him. All Alex and Patrick could do was make a creative excuse for his existence and hope everyone witnessing took note.

"This is too easy!" Alex loudly proclaimed as people ran from their tables to avoid the fight while taking out their phones to snap pictures and take video of the entire spectacle. " _My_ animatronic is _way_ faster! _Yours_ will just wear himself out! We'll be taking that thing back to the engineering room and giving him a complete overhaul after he ruptures himself!"

Patrick didn't verbally respond to Alex's comments. He didn't trust himself to speak. Instead, he just laughed nervously while swiping his finger along his phone. He had to admire Alex. This was one hell of a way to explain the madness that was Sonic and Knuckles fighting in public. Granted, it couldn't truly be considered a _good_ idea, but it was the best they had. Trying to explain them away as some kind of super advanced remote-controlled animatronics was better than just gaping helplessly.

This wasn't good. None of this was good. But Alex felt like she at least had it under control, that this _might_ just be believable, at least until they could figure out a way to stop Sonic and Knuckles from fighting and make a quick break for it.

But then Tails showed up.

And, of course, he was flying.

"S-Sonic!" he called out. "Alex told us not to expose ourselves! Please don't fight, you guys!"

Patrick's eyes widened as he gazed up into the air above them. In a tone that was more for Alex than anyone, he muttered, "T-Tails, too??"

Alex winced. _Damn it, Tails... I had it under control!_ But once again, thinking fast, she shouted, "HA! My ace in the hole! Everyone knows Sonic and Tails are a package deal! Let's see how your Knuckles bot handles _two_ opponents!"

But just then, Tails' spinning tails got caught up in the oversized T-shirt and he came tumbling down onto Patrick and Alex's table.

"Ouch!" he cried.

Alex groaned, before shooting an embarrassed look at Patrick. "Heh, heh... W-Well, Tails has _always_ been a little glitchy..." Then, leaning towards the young fox boy, she asked softly, "Are you okay?"

Tails sat up and rubbed his haunches. "Y-Yeah... Just smarts is all."

"Sorry to hear that," Alex hissed. "Now do me a huge favor and just lay there and pretend to be broken, okay?"

Sonic skidded across the ground after avoiding another aerial attack from Knuckles. "Alright. This is getting annoying now." Having had enough of Knuckles' continuous attacks, Sonic zipped under the echidna and performed an upwards spin dash into Knuckles' underside, knocking him out of the air.

"OOOF!!" Knuckles crashed onto a table as Sonic landed in a crouch.

With a satisfied smirk, Sonic brushed his thumb across his nose. "Heh... That _always_ works."

"Ha!" said Alex, trying not to sound as exasperated as she felt. "The infamous spin dash _always_ does the trick!" Then, as a quiet aside to Patrick, "Quick! Go get that hothead and try to control him!"

"Huh? O-Oh, right!"

Knuckles slowly sat up and shook his head. "Nnnh... That damn hedgehog. Let me at him!"

Patrick threw his arms around the echidna, preventing him from taking off again. "C'mon, man! Relax! That's enough. Take it easy before we get in serious trouble!"

Alex breathed a sigh of relief as it seemed Patrick had managed to restrain Knuckles. Though she really wished Sonic wouldn't thumb his nose at the echidna. That only risked setting him off again, and they were in enough trouble as it was.

"All right, _Sonic!_ " she called. "Time to pack it in! I think we've got all the data we needed from this demonstration!"

As Sonic glanced her way, Alex gave him a wide-eyed look and subtly, though quite frantically, motioned him towards her. ' _Come ON!_ ' she mouthed.

"Huh?" Sonic glanced around, only just now realizing that he was fully exposed. "Uh... Whoops."

But there was more trouble to be had. _Far_ more trouble. For as Alex motioned Sonic to her, several red laser dots spontaneously popped up all around them, targeting Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, Alex... and even Patrick.

Several hovering assault drones had surrounded the vicinity. The metallic flaps on the sides of the drones opened up and small machine guns emerged from their compartments. Alex was mildly relieved to see that the innocent bystanders were outside of the firing range, the drones having only surrounded she and her friends, but neither was she exactly thrilled to be in their crosshairs.

"Shit..."

Sonic slowly turned in a circle, taking in the enemies that surrounded them. "Well, this isn't good."

Patrick gazed around in horror as he immediately understood the sort of trouble they were in. These small ovular drones with red targeting lasers were focused specifically on them, and there was no way they could take credit for these things.

Knuckles managed to pry himself from Patrick's grasp, looking as if he was just itching to get into another fight.

"Oh no!" cried Tails, sitting atop the table nearby. "We've gotta..." He glanced towards Alex and leapt to his feet in alarm. "A-Alex! Watch out!"

But before Alex could even spin around to face the oncoming danger, a strong, lean arm wrapped around her midsection and she felt a body pressing against her back.

"Well, hello, Miss Parker. Here we are again..."

Alex's eyes widened. She recognized that voice!

"Sage!" shouted Sonic, his hands curling into fists. He looked as if he was ready to launch into action.

"A-Alex!!" cried Patrick. It was one of those men; one of Robotnik's androids! This situation just got worse!

Recalling her last interaction with Sage, as well as her fever dreams featuring the very same android, Alex's face paled but for two rosy blushes high on her cheeks. She began to tremble, but she made no attempt to escape. It was as though she was frozen in place. Her gaze almost seemed to glaze over into something of a one thousand-yard stare. For whatever reason, even without much of an effort on Sage's part, Alex was completely helpless against him. Why?

"A-Alex?" said Tails, wondering why she seemed so dazed. She almost looked... entranced. Entranced, but also terrified. Tails didn't like that look. And he didn't like the way Sage was holding her.

The fox boy rose to his feet and yanked off his long T-shirt. His fur bristled as his hands clenched into fists, as though preparing himself to leap at Sage.

Sonic crouched down, ready to rush into action and rescue Alex from the android's grasp. "Sage, let her go! Let's handle this between you and me!"

"Ah, ah, ah! Not so fast, hedgehog." In the blink of an eye, Sage's hand reconstructed itself into a sword-like blade that extended from his forearm.

Alex was completely out of it. Almost as though she'd gone catatonic or slipped into a trance. But the moment Sage brought that blade to her throat, the trance was broken and she let out a gasp.

Patrick, with true panic, let out a nervous yelp. "O-Oh... Oh shit..."

Sage grinned as he pressed the blade to Alex's throat, the cold steel like a lover's caress. "You all put on quite the entertaining bit of cabaret for this dinner crowd. But the show is over."

Knuckles grit his teeth, glaring at the android. "Coward! You're really going to hide behind that girl?"

Sage glanced down at Alex, appreciating the view he had from just above her. "Why... Yes. Yes, I am. And if none of you wants the poor girl harmed, I'd appreciate it if all four of you surrendered."

Patrick felt himself trembling and hated it. "F-Four?" he stammered.

Sage's eyes narrowed at Patrick. "Yes. My demand includes you as well, boy... Since you seem to get on so well with this lot."

"D-Don't do anything he says!" Alex shouted at them, having come to her senses. "He's bluffing! He won't hurt me! They need me!" Bravely, she tilted her head back ever so slightly so as not to risk brushing her neck against the blade. "Isn't that right, _Sage?_ " she said. To his amazement, the girl had found some inner power, some strength of will, to glare defiantly at him.

A very impressive display, indeed. Sage, however, countered without missing a beat. He arched an eyebrow as he gazed down at Alex with an otherwise stoic expression.

"Do we?"

And that was all he said. If this was a bluff, it was a damned good one, because his expression was completely unreadable.

Sonic wanted so badly to rush forward and make a move against Sage. And it was obvious that Knuckles did, as well. But neither moved. His bluff was working.

Alex's expression fell. Her face paled. Had Robotnik decided he didn't need her after all? Not that she _wanted_ to be wanted by the likes of _him_ , but it was better than being collateral damage. If Robotnik decided she wasn't necessary for his plans after all, then that meant there was nothing to stop them from killing her.

A soft, frightened gasp escaped Alex's lips as she came to the realization of the true position she was in. Her eyes shimmered with the stirrings of tears – embarrassing, shameful, incriminating tears. Then, as her body trembled, she began to flicker.

"W-What the hell?" stammered Patrick. "Wh-Why is she...?"

Knuckles' eyes widened. "This is impossible... We thought she had a second Chaos Emerald before. But that's not it. She, herself, is _full_ of Chaos energy! She's on the brink of Chaos Control!"

Alex didn't notice she was flickering again. She was merely overwhelmed with fear. But Sonic saw what was happening and immediately realized the opportunity she had to escape.

"Do it, Alex!" he shouted. "Feel that energy? Let it out and shout, Chaos Control!!"

Now that he mentioned it, she _did_ feel it. She just needed to tap into it. Taking a deep breath, Alex closed her eyes tightly and concentrated. Sage's internal Chaos Energy sensors could feel the fluxing of the energy within her. It was time to put a stop to that.

"Oh, ho ho, no," he said. "There will be none of that, dear. I can't have you slipping through my fingers again."

Alex did her best to ignore Sage's threats, if that was in fact what they were, as she focused on that feeling of Chaos Energy and envisioned herself teleporting away.

"Chaos Con—mmph!" Her eyes snapped open as Sage pressed his lips to hers. He was kissing her! And he was doing it in front of Patrick and Sonic!

_Oh God..._ thought Alex. _It's so deep, too!_ _Oh God... Stop, stop! Please!_

But her body was beginning to tingle all over. And it felt, dare she admit it, pleasant. Alex could feel that spike of chaos energy leaving her body. She could feel herself wanting to doze. Yes... a sweet, sultry goodnight kiss and a nice sleep... That sounded good.

Alex's eyes fluttered closed as she melted against the android. Her flickering ceased and her body slackened but for her mouth, still fully occupied by Sage's.

"EWWW!" shouted Tails, positively scandalized. He covered his eyes and made a retching sound.

Sonic and Patrick each had their own reactions. Patrick paled almost to the point of feeling his legs give out from under him. Not only did his date with the girl of his dreams get ruined because he followed awful advice from Knuckles and treated Alex poorly, but now that same girl was being kissed by another man! A mechanical man, but another man nonetheless. Patrick felt as though what he'd thought of as the worst day of his life was only getting worse.

Sonic, on the other hand, clenched his fists. He could feel his own electric blue kinetic energy building up inside of him as he gnashed teeth. Despite this horrible shock, one thing was made clear by Sage's actions and by his words that he wouldn't have her slipping through his fingers again – Alex was right. They still needed her. They wouldn't harm her. And _that_ gave Sonic the opportunity he needed.

"LET HER GO!!"

Sonic rushed toward Sage and Alex. The android's eyes snapped open at the last second, seeing the electric blue blur coming at him. For a moment, Sage thought the hedgehog was really going to attack him while he had Alex at swordpoint. But at the last moment, Sonic shot upwards, instead, launching himself at the assault drones, smashing himself into one after another at lightning speed.

Sage tore his face from Alex, glancing up as several drones exploded in a matter of seconds. As debris rained down on them, Tails took advantage of Sage's distraction. He lifted into the air and delivered a flying kick to Sage's face. The android staggered backwards, releasing Alex. The girl, limp and delirious, began to fall.

Knuckles darted forward and caught Alex before she could hit the ground. "Get her somewhere safe!" he shouted, passing her to Patrick, who had no choice but to take her into his arms.

"W-Wait," he stammered. "What about you?"

Knuckles waved the boy away. "Go! Now!"

With a grunt, Patrick lifted Alex fully into his arms. Once certain he had her securely, he turned and ran...

And that was when the remaining assault drones open fired.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just the one for today, folks. But more to come! I promise.


	24. Chapter 24

Alex heard two voices talking, one which sounded like Patrick's, as she was passed from one pair of arms into another. A voice, one which sounded strangely familiar, was ordering them to go. Although Alex couldn't move, she felt beneath her the sensation of running.

"Ngh... Wh-What's going on?" she mumbled incoherently. "Wh-What did he... do?" But it wasn't until she heard the ratta-tat-tat of rapid gunfire that her senses returned fully. As her hazy vision cleared, she found herself blinking up at Patrick. "P-Patrick? What's—"

She gasped as she realized she was in his arms and they were on the run. With a cry, she wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him for dear life. She could hear him breathlessly shouting profanities as they ran.

"Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shiiiit!"

Patrick wasn't the strongest guy in the world. But adrenaline and fear were good motivators to carry a full-grown young woman in his arms and run for it. Patrick couldn't say that he'd ever been shot at before. But there was a first time for everything.

"Patrick, what's happening? What did Sage do? Where's..."

She glanced over his shoulder and saw The Veranda patrons fleeing the scene whilst Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles engaged the firing assault drones.

"Oh no! NO! STOP! We can't just leave them there!"

"Knuckles told me to run... so I'm running! There's nothing _we_ can do! They handle this kind of thing all the time, right?"

Alex shook her head, "Not in _this_ world they don't!" She struggled out of Patrick's arms, stumbling slightly onto her feet as she turned back towards the maelstrom, looking as though she were ready to rush blindly into the fray.

Patrick stumbled and nearly tripped before righting himself. With a curse, he turned and chased after Alex. "Alex!! W-Wait! Don't go back there!!"

***

The moment Sonic saw Patrick making a break for it with Alex, he knew he must do everything in his power to cover them. Most of the remaining drones were focused on Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles. But a few had swiveled towards the departing teens. Sonic would never forgive himself if Alex or Patrick got struck by a stray bullet. It was time to make quick work of these trigger-happy drones.

Having rid himself of Liam's clothes, Sonic was able to move unimpeded. He took out the drones targeting Patrick and Alex first. And with Tails and Knuckles' help, they soon destroyed the lot of them.

Sage, meanwhile, had recovered from the blow to his head. Gritting his teeth, he watched as the remaining drones went crashing to the ground at his feet. His target, the girl, was escaping. And Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles had destroyed his backup. This ambush had gone south.

Sage, sword still drawn, called out. "ENOUGH! Hedgehog, this ends now! I _will_ be taking that girl with me!"

Sonic spun towards the android, his green eyes narrowed in a glare. "Not a chance, Sage! If you want Alex... you're gonna have to go through _me!_ "

"And me!" said Tails landing on the ground beside Sonic, his hands clenching into fists at his sides.

" _All_ of us," Knuckles added, pounding his fists together and glowering at Sage.

"Hmph. So be it."

With a swiftness that almost rivaled Sonic's, Sage lunged towards them, swinging his sword. But the sound of sirens stopped him in his tracks. Police cruisers pulled up to surround the al fresco restaurant, their blue and red lights flashing threatening.

"What???"

Sonic grinned. The police would distract Sage. And in turn, Sage would keep the police busy. This was their chance to make a break for it, especially since Sonic was certain he could hear Alex calling his name in the distance.

"Time to go, guys!" Sonic grabbed Knuckles and Tails each by an arm and took off.

"H-HEY! Let _go_ of me, hedgehog!!"

The car doors opened and several uniformed men piled out, firearms at the ready. They pointed their guns at Sage. "Freeze! Drop the weapon!"

Sage slowly turned towards the officers, his eyes narrowing.

"I said drop it!"

For a moment Sage stared blankly at them. Then, "As you wish."

The sword-blade deconstructed and reformed into a human-looking hand once more. An amazed murmur arose among the police.

"W-What the hell? Did that weapon... just change into a hand?"

Shaking his head, an officer moved towards Sage, his gun still drawn. "Don't move an inch, buddy."

Sage rolled his eyes. "Some other time, perhaps. CHAOS CON-"

But as Sage thrust a fist into the air, the cop fired. The bullet tagged the android in the shoulder, causing him to reel back, but just slightly. Gritting his teeth, Sage finished his command. "-TROL!!"

With a bright yellow flash, Sage vanished from view. The police froze, utterly bewildered.

"What the...?"

"Where did he go?"

"They ain't paying me enough for this Houdini shit," muttered the lead officer as he brought his radio to his mouth. "All units, we have a high priority situation here. Caucasian male, roughly six foot one, heavily armed seen fleeing... uh, _suspected_ ," he amended, "...to be fleeing The Veranda. We are... in pursuit...?"

***

Alex skidded to a halt at the sight of blue and red flashes lighting up the pavilion. "No... Oh no, oh no!" She brought her hands to her mouth, cupping it as she shouted in a panic. "S-SONIC!"

A mere second later, Sonic skidded to a halt beside her so suddenly that the resultant wind ruffled her hair and made her mini skirt flare out Marilyn Monroe style. But Alex didn't care. She had nothing but a relieved smile for him.

"Hey!" said Sonic, grinning up at Alex. "Going my way?"

He released Tails, who immediately took to hovering in the air, and simply dropped Knuckles into an unceremonious tumbling stop, only for the latter to end up flat on his back on the ground.

Alex grabbed Sonic and pulled him into her arms and hugged the hell out of him. "Oh, thank God! You-- _we_ are in _so_ much trouble!"

"A-Alex..." he stammered, blushing embarrassedly. "Heh... Not in front of Knuckles..."

At the mention of the echidna, Alex released Sonic and ran to Knuckles. "Seriously, Sonic?" she said, helping the echidna to his feet.

At first, Knuckles attempted to wave off the hands that sought to help him. "I don't need..." only to trail off when he realized just who was helping him. "Uh... I mean, thank you."

"What if he busted his head?" said Alex, casting Sonic an admonishing look.

"Yeah," said Tails with a childlike giggle. "It's already obnoxiously shaped as it is."

Knuckles spun towards Tails raising a spiked fist. "Don't _you_ start, too!"

Sonic merely shrugged. "Hey... he told me to let him go."

"Quit it," said Alex, glancing back towards the mess in time to see the police approaching Sage, and the latter disappearing via Chaos Control.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Patrick, who'd finally caught up and was bent over at the waist with his hands on his knees, panting for breath. "T-They shot him! And he d-disappeared!"

Sonic crossed his arms. "Hmph. Probably went running back to Eggman..." he muttered.

"This isn't good," said Alex. "They're gonna come looking for us next!"

Then she turned, not to Sonic for help, but to Patrick; the only other human, and therefore, the only other person who could possibly have any good ideas.

"What do we do?" she asked in a panic. "We have to get out of here." She glanced at the three anthropomorphic heroes. "We have to get _them_ out of here. But I don't know where to go. I can't take them back to my apartment. Not now. Our cover is totally blown!"

"O-Okay," stammered Patrick, thinking quickly. "Let's get to my car! I know where they can hide out. C'mon!" He turned and began to run, motioning them to follow. But before Alex could run after him, Sonic grabbed a hold of her wrist.

"Hold on! We can't go with _him_! He's an emerald-stealing thief! We can't trust him!"

Alex shook her head. "We don't have a choice, Sonic! And besides, look who's with him." She nodded towards Knuckles. "I'm thinking there's more to this 'emerald stealing' story than we realize, don't you?"

"I don't know if that really makes things much better," he muttered.

Alex glanced over her shoulder at the police cruisers still flashing their lights as the cops tried to track down who all had been involved. Now it was she who took Sonic's hand and tugged at him.

"Please, Sonic! _Please_! We have to!"

Sonic wanted to argue with her further, especially since Patrick had been treating her so poorly during their date. However, it would seem there was no way out of it.

"C'mon!" Patrick called to them over his shoulder. "Before the cops come!"

Sonic rolled his eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. "Ugh. Fine! Let's go!"

Alex and Sonic quickly caught up to the others as Patrick hit the remote to unlock his car.

"Get in! Quick!"

Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles got into the backseat. Knuckles, somehow, managed to get wrangled into the middle, much to his annoyance.

"I didn't say you could sit next to me!"

Sonic gave him a shove. "Just shut up and scoot over!"

Alex took the passenger seat. "Ow!" she yelped. "I sat on something sharp!" She shifted and removed from beneath her butt a patchwork bag. The moment she held it up, she, and the bag, began to glow. "I knew it!" she said, glaring at Patrick. "I _knew_ you had the Chaos Emerald!"

But Patrick merely gaped at the shiny glow that surrounded her. "W-Whoa."

"He's got at least a couple in there from the looks of it," Tails piped in.

From the backseat, Knuckles thrust a hand forward. "Hey! That's MINE!!" he snapped. He immediately got it back, tossed unceremoniously into his face. Knuckles glared at Alex from over top the bag. "And I was starting to think you were the _nice_ one..."

"I _am_ the nice one. But my date was ruined, I got threatened by an android with a freaking sword for an arm _and_ force-kissed by said android, and furthermore, shot at! So _don't_ test me!"

Patrick shook his head in exasperation. "Look, we can talk about all this later! Everyone just settle down!" He started the car and shifted it into reverse. He pulled out of the parking lot and made a swift and not entirely legal U-turn, and floored it.

Alex turned in her seat and glanced out the back window. "The cops aren't following us. That's good." But her face was still too pale in the glow of the flashing lights. "But... what about Sage?" Her eyes flicked to Sonic. "You don't think _he's_ following us, do you?"

"Nah. His scheme got botched. He probably went back home to lick his wounds. Incidentally, nice kick, lil' bro!"

Sonic and Tails shared a fist-bump.

"I guess we should be thankful that it wasn't _Stark_ Robotnik sent. Still..." Alex turned around in her seat, bringing her knees to her chest and hugging them tightly.

"This is insane," said Patrick, shaking his head in disbelief. "You're friends with Sonic and Tails! I was just getting over the fact that _Knuckles_ was real... and now this!"

"Yeah, in _real_ big trouble," said Alex, stealing another glance at the echidna in the backseat before turning her gaze to Patrick. "I suppose that was _him_ on your Bluetooth, then?"

"Yeah..." Patrick sighed. "Yeah, it was him. I was really super nervous about the date, thinking I'd mess it up, and _he_ told me that he could talk me through it because he's, like, some kinda Casanova back where he's from."

Sonic snorted. "W-What? Knuckles? HAHAHAHAA! Are you kidding me? Who the hell would _he_ have dated? He lives on an island _alone!_ "

"Shut up, Hedgehog! What would _you_ know about anything?"

"I shouldn't have done it," Patrick lamented. "I shouldn't have listened to anything he was telling me. I'm sorry I acted like such a jerk tonight, Alex."

Alex huffed and crossed her arms. "Well, it's your own fault, Patrick Miller. I mean, really, you don't have to be a huge Sonic The Hedgehog fan to reason that Knuckles wouldn't make a good wingman. I mean, you _have_ played the games, right?"

"To be fair, I don't remember _that_ happening in the games," Patrick mumbled.

"Anyway, it's not Knuckles' fault that you screwed it up. It was _your_ fault for letting him in your ear." Alex turned to face Patrick, and though her expression was stern, he detected no hatred or dislike there. Maybe there was still a chance. "I mean, I was nervous too, you know. But I didn't have Sonic or Tails in my ear coaching me. I went there on my own and tried to be myself. You should've done the same." She glanced back at Knuckles, who let out a "Hmph" and hugged his patchwork bag tighter.

"You may not have had them in your ear, but Sonic and Tails _were_ there, as we can very well see now!" Patrick insisted, motioning his head, unnecessarily, toward the backseat passengers.

Tails' ears flattened and his brow furrowed. "H-Huh? Me? What did _I_ do?"

"Hey," said Alex, getting flustered with Patrick. "It's not like I _told_ them to come!" She turned around in her seat, aiming a particularly stern look at Sonic. "Seriously! Why were you following me?"

"Because I had a bad feeling about it all! With _him_ swiping the Chaos Emerald, whether Knuckles was involved or not," said Sonic, tossing a glare at the echidna. "I just didn't like the feeling I was getting. If it had gone well, I would've left with no trouble! But then it looked like you were getting upset. If I'd known it was Knuckles' fault, all along..."

Knuckles growled, muttering incoherent threats through his teeth.

"Besides," said Sonic, "It's a good thing I did, since Sage showed up. I _told_ you Robotnik was up to something. It's not safe."

Alex turned back around in her seat, bringing her knees to her chest and resting her chin atop them. Patrick tried not to notice the way her skirt was riding up in this position, doing his best to keep his eyes on the road.

"That was awful..." she said softly. "I guess I'm glad you followed me after all, Sonic. It's just... I thought Robotnik would give up. I'm _really_ not that interesting. Why doesn't he just take the Chaos Emeralds and leave me out of it?"

The backseat passengers tensed. Sensing their unease, Alex quickly added, "I'm not saying I _want_ him to get the Chaos Emeralds. I just want him to leave _me_ alone." She cast a sideways look at Patrick. "Why _did_ you take the Chaos Emerald?" she asked moodily. "And if you blame Knuckles, so help me..." Her threat lingered uncertainly for a moment, but then, with a sigh, she admitted, "Well, I guess that _would_ make a lot of sense."

Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, Patrick rubbed the back of his neck, working out the stress kinks. "Uh... well..."

"Alright, alright," grumbled Knuckles. "If you _must_ know, I was originally planning to _take_ the emerald from him. You'd just been kidnapped by Robotnik's androids, and I was hunting for the Chaos Emeralds so I could gather them all and maybe return home using Chaos Control. But instead, Patrick begged for my help. He wanted to me to find Robotnik's base and rescue you!"

Alex cast another glance at Patrick. "R-Really?" she asked. "You asked him to rescue me?"

By God, the look she gave him... This was the Alex he knew and adored. She was back, however briefly. And the way she was looking at him right now... It was not so unlike the way she'd looked at Sonic when they'd been back in the fray and she'd been calling his name, crying out for her hero. It was a look of admiration. A look of gratitude for a knight in shining armor. Patrick grinned and blushed, hoping it wasn't noticeable.

Knuckles let out a long sigh. "Patrick didn't really take the emerald. When you returned home, I told him to hang onto it in case you were working with Robotnik."

"That's ridiculous!" exclaimed Sonic, tossing another glare at Knuckles. "Alex would never—"

"How would _I_ know that?" asked Knuckles, crossing his arms and glaring right back. "I don't know her as well as _you_ do, apparently!"

Alex looked angry and hurt by Knuckles' words, but with a sigh, she turned back around, resting her chin on her knees and looking moody again. "Well, I suppose if you weren't suspicious of me, you wouldn't be you, Knuckles. But rest assured, my time with Robotnik was the absolute worst experience of my entire life. And if it wasn't for Tails, there's no telling _what_ he would've done to me."

"That's right!" Tails proclaimed proudly. "I rescued her!"

Alex glanced back at him with a soft smile. "You sure did, Tails. And just in the nick of time, too."

Patrick grinned at Tails in the rearview mirror. "And I think I can safely say that we're all very glad that you did, little man!" He turned his gaze onto Alex once more. "Just what is it that they want with you?"

"Well, I guess one good place to start is with the REMgage. In fact," she said shooting a glare at Knuckles before looking back at Patrick. "If you wanna talk about someone who _is_ working with Robotnik, it's Edgar Roman." She knew this name would mean nothing to Knuckles – and she didn't particularly care – but it _would_ mean something to Patrick.

Sure enough...

" _Edgar Roman?_ " he exclaimed. "Are you serious?"

"Not that he seems to be doing it willingly, mind you. Robotnik captured him, too."

Alex told Patrick all about what happened inside the REMgage, about the strange voice that told her she was the one he'd been waiting for and the shout of 'Chaos Control.' She spoke of her subsequent headaches and the strange occurrences of falling asleep and waking up somewhere else.

"That time you thought I snuck out of class? I fell asleep thinking about how badly I wanted a coffee and accidentally activated Chaos Control and woke up in the coffee shop."

She told him about how she met Sonic, their visit to Centurion Technologies to try to get access to the REMgage, of Robotnik's attack, her near escape, and of the mad doctor showing up at her place of work.

"The stalker I told you about... Well, that was Robotnik. Naturally, I couldn't tell you at the time. You wouldn't have believed me."

Finally, she regaled for him and Knuckles everything Robotnik had told her – first, that she was essentially a living Chaos Emerald, and later, that she might be more than just a Chaos Emerald; that she may, in fact, contain enough Chaos Energy to be _seven_ Chaos Emeralds, and after he kidnapped her, that he desired to use her as an energy source to power his base and, more specifically, the REMgage for his own nefarious purposes, though he never revealed what those actually were.

Patrick listened to the whole story in absolute shock. If not for recent events and current company, he would scarcely have believed what he was hearing. As for Knuckles, it finally made sense why he kept sensing so much Chaos Energy in and around the girl. She had been bombarded by the full force of all seven Chaos Emeralds. He nodded in understanding.

"That explains everything," said the echidna. "You really _are_ an embodiment of Chaos Energy."

"But why..." Patrick swallowed hard and slumped forward just a bit. "Why did that android... k-kiss you?"

Alex paled but for those two rosy spots on her cheeks. She turned her gaze out the window as she replied. "I-I don't know. But I think he has some sort of... neurotransmitter-type ability. Like, the ability to manipulate a person's senses. He's put me to sleep before, in a sort of... daze."

"Yeah," Tails added uncomfortably. "He was doing _something_ to you back at the Robo Dome, too, wasn't he? I heard you crying out for help."

"Y-Yes," Alex stammered, hugging herself as she gazed out the window. "Robotnik wanted him to try to elicit some sort of... reaction... to test the range of my Chaos Energy, since it seems to happen when I'm scared or... or under some sort of duress."

Sonic's eyes narrowed. He didn't like what he was hearing. It sounded as if Sage had done something truly awful to Alex. Patrick couldn't be sure what truly happened, but he had an uneasy feeling. One that made his stomach feel empty and queasy.

Tails tilted his head inquisitively. "That makes sense. But what exactly was he doing to—"

"So where _are_ we going, exactly?" asked Alex, cutting him off sharply and looking at Patrick. Whatever Sage had done to her, she didn't want to talk about it. And none were more keen to this realization than Patrick and Sonic, who found themselves agonizing over just what it might have been.

Patrick did his best to swallow his unease. "Uh... M-My parents' house... in Green Creek."

Alex gazed at him with wide eyes. "Your... parents' house??? You're going to take Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles to your parents' house??? Like, 'Hey mom and pop, don't mind me. Just bringing a few bipedal anthropomorphic aliens over for dinner. You might notice they look like videogame characters from the Sonic The Hedgehog series. Don't worry. Pure coincidence.'?"

"Huh? Oh, no. My parents wouldn't know who Sonic is. Well, Dad would, maybe. Er... What I mean is, they're almost never home. Dad's always away on business and mom works just about all the time. So really, no one's ever there. Especially since I live on campus. But just to be safe, I thought that I could hide these guys out in my parents' guest house."

"Guest house?" said Knuckles. "Are we to be guests?"

"Well, you're _my_ guests, I guess."

Alex's jaw dropped. "Wait... Guest house??? Your parents have a guest house?! Holy shit! Who's your Dad? Jeff Bezos?"

Patrick chuckled awkwardly. "No, my dad isn't Jeff Bezos. But he _is_ an executive with OmegaSoft... you know, the software company?"

And yet this revelation was met with nearly the same amount of shock and amazement. "Your dad's an executive at OmegaSoft??? I've seriously never met anyone who had any affiliation with someone who could be considered 'an executive' at _anything_ , let alone something as prestigious as a software company. Wow."

Patrick gave her a small, embarrassed smile. Apparently, this was something to be really impressed about. But he only saw it as a means by which he was able to go to college without a headache.

"What _is_ a guest house?" asked Tails.

"It's a smaller house, usually by a swimming pool, that rich people have in addition to their primary house," Alex explained, glancing back at him. But when her eyes returned to Patrick, they were sparkling, assuaging him of any fear that she was judging him harshly for being wealthy. " _Do_ you have a pool? You've _gotta_ have a pool, right? _Please_ tell me you have a pool!"

A slow smile spread across Patrick's face. "Yeah. Yeah, we a pool."

Alex pumped her fist into the air. "YES! Score!"

"Who cares about a pool?" said Sonic. "Is there room to run?"

"Oh, yeah. Our back yard is huge. There's lots of room. And you don't have to worry about being seen because our nearest neighbor is miles away."

Sonic grinned and leaned back, putting his arms behind his head. "You know, Patrick... you might not be so bad after all."

Alex was all smiles. "This is great!" she exclaimed. "It looks like we found our Chris Thorndyke, guys. _And_..." she said, leaning back and crossing her arms behind her head, completely unaware that she was mimicking Sonic who was doing the same thing behind her. " _I've_ just found my new weekend getaway!"

Patrick couldn't hide the grin on his face as he noticed that Alex was sitting in the same manner as Sonic. That was just too cute. But there was something else he couldn't help but address.

"Wait a minute... Are you saying that you wanna hang out with me at my family's house... on the weekends?"

"Well, duh," she said as though this were apparent. "Obviously, if I've got access to a place like that, I'm gonna take advantage of it, especially if you have a pool. If I can have full access to all your rich-person facilities, that would be so awesome! Seriously, though," she added, grinning at him, "I'm prepared to give you another chance, Patrick Miller. So long as you stop taking advice from Knuckles and just be yourself around me, okay? If I'd wanted to go on a date with _that_ lovable hothead, I'd just stay home and play Sonic & Knuckles. Catch my drift?"

Patrick let out a small laugh. "Just as long as you're not just using me to swim in my parents' pool, then you've got yourself a deal."

Alex grinned and shrugged. "Of course not. But, you know, the way I see it... as Sonic and Tails' official caretaker, I should get full access to your parents' house under any and _all_ conditions."

She leaned towards him, wearing a very serious expression that only made Patrick want to smile. It was impossible to take her completely seriously. She was just so damn cute. And she was still wearing that cute outfit from their date. God, he was crazy about this girl.

"I found them first, you know," she said, "So you can't steal them from me."

Patrick grinned from ear to ear. "Trust me... If it means I'm going to be seeing more of you, I can't refuse that."

In the backseat Tails' gaze moved from Alex to Sonic. "Did we just get adopted?"

Sonic crossed his arms and frowned. "I thought we were past treating me like a little kid..." he muttered.

"Wait a minute!"

Knuckles leaned forward as if something very serious had just occurred to him. Everyone looked at him, and he was suddenly the center of attention in the car.

"What... is a Chris Thorndyke?"

***

If there was a halfway point between Scottstown and North Lake City, Green Creek was it. And if Scottstown was a college town, North Lake City a major metropolitan area, and the place where Edgar Roman lived suburban, this was somewhere between suburban and rural, leaning more on the side of rural. Alex was pretty certain she'd seen lots of farmland on the way to Patrick's folks' home. There was the occasional house – though, to Alex, they were more along the lines of what someone might call a manor – lived in, no doubt, by wealthy families whose main breadwinner possessed a career as a doctor, lawyer or, of course, an executive of a prestigious software company.

Patrick's house was much the same as those, though Alex was happy to see that it was nowhere near the grandiose level that was Edgar Roman's headquarters. But it was still quite impressive, with a grand acreage and even a set of front gates, which was often how Alex measured the wealth of a house. Though the gates were nothing like the tall wrought iron security-manned gates at Roman's place. Instead, they were controlled by a remote clipped to the sun visor above Patrick's seat. Alex whistled.

"Holeee shit... Perhaps I should start calling you the Fresh Prince of Green Creek," she said as the gates opened to permit them entrance. "Or perhaps I should just call you what your butler calls you, Master Miller?"

"Uh, we don't actually have a butler, Alex. There _is_ a lady that comes by to clean like once or twice a week, Margerie. But I don't think she ever goes into the guest house. So you guys'll be safe there."

Patrick, admittedly, hadn't been home in quite a while. After all, he lived in an apartment with a roommate. This place barely felt like home to him. It had barely felt like home when he _did_ live there, especially since his parents were never around.

"Let me make something clear really quick," he said as he pulled his car down the drive and veered off toward the garage at the side of the house. "Make all the jokes you want... I don't live here. My parents _barely_ live here. To me, this place feels more like a museum, at best. A tomb, at worst."

"A tomb?" asked Knuckles. One could only guess the sort of mental image that he had in his head.

"If anything," said Patrick, "You guys might actually make this place _feel_ like a home."

Patrick's tone as he spoke did not escape Alex's notice. It seemed that as luxurious as it was, it felt banal and incredibly empty without the warmth of family there to occupy it. She supposed among wealthy kids, that was often the trade-off. For wealth, luxuries, and the privilege of an education free of debt, one's parents were often married to their work instead of their families. Alex supposed it made sense why Patrick would prefer to live in an apartment on campus. That and the commute from here every morning would be a bit of a pain.

"Well, _I've_ got another word for it," she said as they pulled to a stop in the long cobblestone drive that led past the house to a rather sizable garage. "VACATION HOME!!!!" The moment Patrick parked the car, Alex was out the door and dashing excitedly out of the garage.

"H-Hey! Hold on a—"

"Gotta run!" said Sonic, pushing open his door. "I wanna stretch my legs something bad!" And in a flash, he was gone.

Knuckles was soon to follow. "I'll scout the area, make sure we weren't followed." And with that, he was gone.

Patrick looked back at Tails, who was still sitting in the backseat, gazing up at him. For a moment, Patrick just stared at him before saying, "Well... go on then."

Tails smiled. "Thanks for the ride, Patrick! Sonic! Wait up!"

And just like that... Patrick was alone in his car.

For a moment, he just stared at himself in the rearview, his hair having returned to its messier state ages ago. With a sigh, he shook his head. "Don't sit here feeling sorry for yourself. Go find Alex."

Patrick got out of the car and locked it with his remote. He could hear Alex's voice coming from the front of the house.

"Pillars??? This house has pillars?! Wow! You _are_ rich!"

Patrick couldn't help but chuckle to himself. His own personal feelings about this house aside and his embarrassment over his parents' wealth aside, she was damned cute.

As Alex twirled playfully around one of the pillars, she spotted the pool at the back property of the house. "Oh, _sweet!_ "

She took off down a small dirt trail which weaved in among perfectly manicured hedges which stood at waist height, arranged in interconnecting concentric circles.

"Whoa!" she exclaimed. "It's like a mini hedge maze! This... place... is... awesome!" she squealed. "Wow! Look at this pool! And you even have a diving board! I can practice my diving!"

By the time Patrick caught up to her, Alex was already sitting at the edge of the pool with her boots off and her feet dangling in the water as she watched Sonic – or the blue streaking blur that could only _be_ Sonic – zoom by, ruffling her hair and causing the trees to bend in the wind. Even the pool was not safe from his turbulence, as the water sloshed like waves, lapping at the sides of the pool and even sending a fine mist-like spray onto Alex's face, causing her to laugh with delight. It was thus Patrick found her, the most carefree she'd been since the start of their disastrous date.

"You didn't waste any time, did you?"

Alex glanced up at him from beneath her disheveled hair, to see Patrick standing nearby. His tie was loosened and his collar unbuttoned. He had a single hand tucked into his pocket, giving him something of a casual, yet still dressy look.

She shrugged and smiled. "I mean, this may be pretty banal to you at this point, having lived here, but for me... This is the lap of luxury. No way am I _not_ gonna take advantage of this. Besides," she said, crossing her arms behind her head and leaning back so that she was laying on the ground, still with her legs in the water. "I figure you owe me this after that unmitigated disaster back at The Veranda."

Patrick took off his shoes and peeled off his socks, one of which looked as if it was already attempting to flee his foot. He rolled up his pant-legs before sitting down next to Alex and dipping his feet in the water alongside her. He was going to say something about how, with that android there, the date was destined to fail one way or another, but instead, she caught him off guard by her following words.

"You know," she said, "You really do look better like that."

He looked at Alex with a raised eyebrow. "I look better like what?"

Alex, still laying on her back beside him, gazed at him appreciatively. It was a look he could have imagined on her face only in his wildest of fantasies. He felt his cheeks getting hot. Patrick would give anything to have this girl look at him for as long as possible.

"Like _that_ ," she said. "The way you are now. You know... relaxed." She turned her gaze skyward. "Messy hair, loosened tie, your shirt not buttoned all the way to the top. It's better. It's more... you know... _you_." She cast another furtive glance at him and he could swear he detected the slightest of blushes on her cheeks. "Not that I minded you dressing up for me, of course. I do like the suit. It... _suits_... you." Alex snorted, only to clap a hand over her face. "Ugh... sorry. That was awful. Like, a total dad joke."

"Yeah," Patrick chuckled. "Yeah, that was pretty terrible. Funny, but terrible."

Watching her laugh felt very good, especially after he'd seen her so fearful and in such danger earlier, and it was certainly better than the way she'd looked at him back at The Veranda when he was spouting the garbage Knuckles was feeding him.

Patrick took a moment to gaze at her appreciatively. "I think _you_ look really good. I mean, I always think you look really good, but that outfit... You just... I dunno. You look great." He nervously averted his gaze, afraid that he was talking too much again.

Alex smiled, this time somewhat shyly. "If it makes you feel any better," she said softly, "...you know, about the whole date disaster... I'll admit that I agonized over what to wear for most of the day today. Just so you know that I really _did_ want to go out with you and not just to grill you about the Chaos Emerald."

Patrick's smile only grew wider. "Well, if it makes _you_ feel any better, I had already planned to ask you out again after the coffee date. So, I never did any of it with Knuckles' interrogation in mind. But the coffee date went south and the dinner date was shot straight to hell. What great luck we seem to be having with all this." Patrick lowered his head and sighed, his shoulders hunching.

"Oh, come on now," said Alex with a laugh as she sat back up. "It wasn't _that_ bad. I mean, it was definitely memorable. Think of it this way... You got a chance to show off your skills. If I remember correctly, for a brief moment there you were running with me in your arms, carrying me all princess-style. So, the way I see it, you helped rescue me."

Patrick rubbed the back of his neck, smiling sheepishly. "Heh. I _did_ do that, didn't I? I didn't even know I could..."

"It's amazing what adrenaline can do, isn't it? Besides, now that I know it was _Knuckles_ who was coaching you back at The Veranda, it's so much easier to forgive you. Knuckles is a dope. A lovable dope, but a dope nonetheless."

"Yeah, you're not kidding there."

"And you..." Alex tilted her head thoughtfully, trying to find the words. "Well, you're a lovable dope, too, Patrick Miller." And with that, she leaned over the pool, scooped her hand through the water and gave him a splash.

"Ah! Hey!"

Alex laughed.

"Oh, I see... That's how this is gonna go, huh?" Patrick took off his suit jacket and tossed it aside.

Alex placed her hands against her cheeks in mock fear. "Uh oh," she teased. "Rich boy means business now."

He rolled up his sleeve before sending a splash back at Alex. And he got her good, too. Better than she'd gotten him. Her hair was soaked, plastered against her face. Alex glared at him, and for a moment he thought she was legitimately mad.

He gulped. "Uh... I..."

But then, with a mischievous grin on her face, Alex launched herself at him. She gave him a solid shove, with the intention of pushing him into the pool. But it didn't quite go the way she planned. Patrick's arms windmilled a moment before he grabbed hold of Alex as though to keep himself from falling into the pool. But instead, they both lost their balance and tumbled into the water together with a big splash.

Patrick was the first to emerge, treading water in his nice shirt, tie, and pants. At least his shoes and suit were safe. Alex, for a while, did not emerge. For a moment, Patrick began to panic.

"A-Alex? Aluuumfph!"

He was yanked back underwater by his ankles, and when he emerged once more, he found himself gazing at a very wet, very disgruntled Alex, who promptly spat a stream of water into his face.

"AAh!"

"You," she said with a serious glare that was wavering on amused just at the fringes of her lips, "are lucky that I didn't have my satchel on me."

Patrick grinned. He had no idea why he'd been worried. Alex swam like a fish. This was her element. " _I'm_ lucky my wallet and phone are in my jacket pocket."

Alex gave him another splash, which Patrick promptly dished back. Soon, they'd devolved into an all-out splash battle until a red sneakered foot tapping impatiently at the poolside caught their attention.

Patrick and Alex, soaked from head to toe, Patrick's dress shirt clinging to him, and Alex's sweater sliding too far down one shoulder and her skirt floating scandalously about her waist, glanced up. Sonic, with Tails hovering just behind him, cleared his throat.

"Ahem... If you're all done trying to drown each other, how about we get some grub, hmm?"

Patrick, who for some reason couldn't help feeling like he was being scolded by a parent who'd just discovered a boy doing something scandalous to their daughter, pushed his dripping glasses back up his nose and averted his gaze embarrassedly.

"That's right," said Alex. "We never _did_ get to eat. And I _am_ pretty hungry. You don't suppose they'd deliver pizza all the way ou-ou-ou— ACHOO! Out here, do you?" she asked, with a sniff.

"Oh! Alex!" exclaimed Patrick. "Jeez, you shouldn't be out here swimming! You just got over being sick!"

"Yeah, well, who's fault is _that_?" she retorted playfully.

Patrick pulled himself over the side of the pool and held out his hand. "Here..."

Alex smiled shyly as he helped her out of the pool. Patrick grabbed his suit jacket and pulled the keys out of his pocket. He took one of them off the keychain and tossed it to Sonic.

"You guys go on into the pool house. Make yourselves at home. I'll take Alex to the main house and help her get dried off and we'll see about some dinner. Okay?" He draped his suit jacket around Alex's shoulders. "The last thing we need is for you to catch cold again."

Blushing at Patrick's chivalry, Alex smiled at Sonic over her shoulder. "We'll be right back, Sonic. Hang tight, okay?"

Patrick picked up Alex's satchel and, with an arm around her, escorted her to the main house. Sonic clutched the key in his fist, glaring moodily after them.

Knuckles landed beside him as they walked away. "Attempting to drown one another was their idea of flirting? Humans know nothing of romance."

"Stuff it, Knuckle-head," Sonic grumbled as he turned and stalked off toward the guest house.

Tails exchanged a look with Knuckles. Then, with a shrug, he hurried after Sonic. "Boy, a guest house sounds great! I can't wait to see it!"

Knuckles shook his head confusedly. "I don't know what _he's_ all crabby about. It's not like _he_ got wet." He hiked his patchwork bag up onto his shoulder and followed after Tails.


	25. Chapter 25

Alex's mouth was in a perpetual state of slack-jawed awe as Patrick led her through the front door of the main house and into a large foyer.

Patrick flicked on the lights, took a deep breath and called out, "HELLOOO? ANYONE HOOOOME?" His voice echoed, though just slightly, throughout the house. But, of course, he was greeted by nothing but silence. "Yeah... I didn't think so. I guess we're safe."

Alex shook her head, bewildered. "Why do you even _need_ such a big house? I mean, if no one's ever even here to enjoy it?"

"I guess they thought it would be good for raising two kids in... or something. But my sister went on a 'self-exploration journey' in Europe and, frankly, never came back."

Alex raised a single eyebrow. "Hmm... Maybe she never found herself, so she's still looking," she mused playfully, hoping her joke would take the edge off his discomfort when speaking of his estranged family.

Patrick let out an amused snort. "Come on." He took her hand, making her blush, as he led her up one of a pair of matching staircases that led to the second floor of the house.

"Seriously??? You have _two_ staircases? I feel like I should be coming down them in a ballgown or something, like that one scene in the Titanic, or in Beauty and the Beast."

"Oh, c'mon," he said exasperatedly, and yet the image of Alex in a ballgown painted a pretty picture in his mind. "I'll take you to my parents' master bathroom. Get you something to wear, and I'll throw our wet stuff into laundry."

"Your parents' master... Oh! Wait, wait, wait! I have to ask, and please let me know if I'm overstepping my boundaries, but do your parents have, like, a luxury bath? Ya know, like with the jets and everything? What's that called? Like, a... a jacuzzi or something?"

Patrick glanced over his shoulder at Alex, wearing an expression that seemed to say, _'C'mon, We're not_ that _rich.'_ However, he sighed and turned forward once more. "What do you think?" he asked. "My parents are preposterous."

But Alex's smile only widened. "You call it preposterous... I call it brilliant! Your parents are brilliant, Patrick! _You're_ brilliant! Do you think I could, ya know, like, _use_ it?" She chewed her lip nervously, trying not to look too eager, even though she was grinning behind that lip bite.

"Well..."

Alex hugged his arm and leaned against him. "Pleeeaase?"

Patrick glanced down at her. Her off-the-shoulder sweater had been slipping further down since their romp in the pool. And now, here she was pressing firmly against his arm. That begging expression of hers certainly didn't help matters, either. With a deep breath, he acquiesced.

"Oh, all right."

Alex fist-pumped the air. "YES!"

Patrick just shook his head. This girl had no idea what she did to him. As he led her through the master bedroom, Alex did her best to tiptoe across the carpet.

"Man... I feel really bad dripping water all over your parents' floor like this."

But Patrick was hardly worried about dripping over his parents' bedroom carpet. They were almost never home to even know any better. It'd be dry by the time his mom got home from work... whenever _that_ might be. The master bathroom was just annexed off the side of the bedroom, across from a pair of French doors which led out onto a small balcony. There they found the jacuzzi.

"Here we go. This bathroom is crazy. There's a sound system, a dimmer switch for the lights, and the jacuzzi controls are on the wall by the tub."

"Whoa...Sweet!" Alex went over to inspect everything, only to chew her lip again and glance sheepishly at Patrick. "Um... I have no idea how to work any of this," she admitted. "Would you...?" she left her question hanging with a simple tilt of her head.

Patrick stared at her for a moment. She wanted him to set it up for her? Was he really going to do that? Was he really going to do anything this girl asked of him and expect very little in return? Was he that pathetic?

He was already on the way over to doing it when he had his answer. He leaned past Alex and fiddled with the controls. She bounced excitedly on the balls of her feet as the tub filled with water and the warming jets began to bubble.

"There. That should do it, I think."

"Ohhh man... that looks _so_ inviting right now! Thanks a bunch!"

Then, to Patrick's immense shock, she stripped off her shirt. His eyes went wide and his cheeks went red. She acted like it was no big deal!

"Dude, chill," she said, laughing at his reaction. "I'm wearing a sports bra." Her hands moved to the waistband of her skirt, but she hesitated, realizing what it was she'd been about to do. "Um, do you think you could be a gentleman and avert your gaze?"

"Oh! U-Uh, yeah. Of course."

When he did so, he heard her ask from behind him, "Are you sure you have something I could change into? I feel bad... like I'm really putting you out."

"N-No. Not at all! I wanna make it up to you for everything. For acting like a jerk, for not being able to do more against that android... I wanna help you out in any way I can." He chewed his bottom lip a moment before taking a deep breath. "I just want you to know, Alex... if there's anything you need, ever... don't hesitate to ask me."

At first, he was met with resounding silence. Oh God. Was that too much? Had he creeped her out? Why wasn't she speaking? Was she just taking it all in or...?

"Actually, Patrick... there _is_ something I need."

When he turned around, perhaps foolishly – for in retrospect, he could've ruined everything with that single movement – she was modestly wrapped in a towel and already reclining in the jacuzzi.

With a smile that made him melt, she said, "I need you to order a pizza before my hedgehog friend gets ornery, and then... I want you to join me."

"J-Join y—"

She held up a finger before he could say anything. "But towels _must_ be worn at _all times_. Okay?"

Patrick stared at her in awe, his cheeks flushing before he finally nodded. "Y-Yeah. Shit, yeah! Okay. Uh... Give me a few minutes and I'll be... I'll be back."

Patrick gathered her clothes to get them in the wash as he'd previously stated before he went for the door. He stumbled over the threshold, smiling, before he disappeared from view.

Alex shook her head and turned her gaze to the ceiling. _Oh boy..._ she thought. _What have I just done?_

She'd acted on impulse. She knew Patrick was really a sweet guy who just wanted to be helpful but had allowed his nerves to get the better of him and got mixed up in some bad advice from Knuckles. She knew he felt awful about it and wished he could have been more help when she was in danger. She knew he felt bad, and she felt bad that _he_ felt bad. And ever since they'd arrived at his parents' house – which he'd so generously dedicated to safely hiding Sonic and the others – she'd noticed how strangely he was affected by it. It was almost like he didn't like the place, like he didn't even want to be here. And, she supposed, it made sense.

She'd give anything to have her mother well and at home again, and she'd give anything if only she could spend one more day with her father, both of whom were, as far as she was concerned, the world's best parents. She'd been so close to her father, especially. She couldn't imagine what it would be like growing up without them around. If that was the case, she was pretty sure she'd hate living in a big empty house, too. No matter how luxurious it was.

So, feeling bad for Patrick and wanting to let him know that while he may not have attentive parents, he at least had an attentive friend in her, she'd invited him to join her in the jacuzzi. But now she was worried that things were going too fast.

_Well, you've already made the invite,_ she told herself. _It's a little late to change your mind._ She just hoped Patrick wouldn't get the wrong idea.

After putting the clothes in the wash, Patrick placed an order for delivery for the hungry hero critters that were currently occupying his parents' guest house. The nearest pizza place was a distance away, and there was a premium for delivery. But whatever. He knew the risks when staying in this house. It was fine. Perhaps it would give everyone time to relax after the craziness from earlier in the day. But, really, the number one thing on his mind was the invite that Alex had just given him. He... her... in a jacuzzi... technically naked except for towels. And she was adamant about those towels.

_Don't get too excited,_ he advised himself. _Maybe she's just being nice. Certainly, this isn't going to lead to anything. After all, you two haven't even had a single successful date yet. Don't go crazy._ _Just..._ _go in there. And be cool._

Patrick returned to the bathroom with a towel around his lower half. "Hey. Took care of everything."

Alex quickly sat up from her reclined position. Her eyes were wide at the sight of him in naught but a towel, though she quickly attempted to cover up her initial reaction with a joke. "Heh... _Now_ look who didn't waste any time," she teased.

Patrick smiled somewhat nervously as he took a seat on the edge of the jacuzzi. Alex couldn't help giving him a once-over. For a big video game and computer dork, Patrick Miller wasn't a bad looking guy from the neck down.

_How can a guy like him have a body like that? Does he work out? He doesn't seem the type._

She had to literally bite her tongue to keep herself from asking him. Her impulse control was certainly lacking tonight.

"Uh, okay," he said. "I'm coming in."

As Patrick lowered himself into the tub, Alex drew her knees a little closer to her chest to give him room. Granted, there was plenty of room in the jacuzzi, but there was a part of her that was so programmed to be far more modest than this strange new devil-may-care attitude she'd developed of late, and so she did her best to make sure they did not touch whilst in the tub.

"Oooohhh..." said Patrick. "Oh yeah... that's nice."

Patrick enjoyed the feeling of the water jets pounding against his body. Oh, it had been such a long time since he got to enjoy something like this. He supposed being the son of his preposterous parents had its benefits once in a while.

" _You're_ telling _me_. If I had a tub like this, I'd use it _all_ the time."

After a shared chuckled, they became awkwardly silent, both averting their gaze, only peeking at one another occasionally, neither one able to come up with something to say until Alex finally blurted out, "I, um, you know, don't normally do this sort of thing." She lowered her gaze, her cheeks aflame. "Just so you know."

Patrick gazed at her through his steamy glasses, which he hadn't bothered to take off, and smiled. "Well, that's fine. I don't either. Maybe if I started all of my dates with 'Wanna see my jacuzzi?' they'd go better. You think?"

Alex laughed. "Noohoho! Don't do that! Never ever do that!" she said, shaking her head adamantly. "Totally bad idea!"

Another shared laugh, followed by yet another awkward silence. Then, Patrick saw her tuck that damp purple-fringed hair behind her ear self-consciously. It was this little action that always seemed to put a smile on his face.

"All in all, Patrick," she said softly. "This date... it hasn't been all that bad, you know."

"R-Really? You really think so?" Patrick rubbed the back of his neck, averting his gaze only to look at her again. "Does that mean... that this is still technically part of the date?"

Alex smiled and shrugged. "I figure it kinda has to be, right? I mean, it'd be weird if it wasn't." She hesitated a moment, chewing her lip. "Actually, I guess it's kinda weird either way, isn't it? I mean, this is our first date and we're in a jacuzzi together in nothing but towels. But then, of course, this date was pretty unorthodox from the very beginning... what with Sonic and Knuckles and Robotnik's assault drones. So I'll gladly claim this little excursion to your parents' ritzy-ass mansion in the middle of nowhere as a date. It's like staying at a super luxurious Bed and Breakfast or a resort or something. And I'm, like, totally okay with that."

"Yeah," said Patrick, smiling. "That's kinda the way I see it, too... any time I'm here, anyway."

Alex thought Patrick's admission was actually kind of sad, but she didn't tell him so. Maybe he'd come to like this place more now that Sonic and the others were here to occupy it. Not to mention she had every intention of making use of its luxurious facilities. Aside from his car and likely the totally-paid-for college education, she admired Patrick for otherwise living the typical college kid life, sharing an apartment and doing the whole pauper thing. Despite his affluential background, he was very down to Earth, even to the point of thinking his parents' choice to have such lavish accommodations was ridiculous. Yes, she could admire that. But maybe she could also teach him how to enjoy it. She knew _she_ was.

Patrick blinked as her expression became stern and she leaned towards him almost threateningly. But by God, if she wasn't still adorable. "Though, just because we're partially naked in a bath together doesn't mean I want you getting the wrong idea, okay? It's still just a first date. Nothing more serious than that, got it?"

"Okay. I understand. Don't you worry about a thing."

Alex nodded, satisfied, and allowed herself to relax a bit more, slowly leaning back against the jets and closing her eyes. "Mmm..."

Patrick gazed her through glasses which had slipped to the edge of his nose. A more serious and concerned expression took over his face. "Alex..."

Something in his tone compelled her to open her eyes and sit up. "Yeah, Patrick?"

He hesitated a moment, taking a deep breath. "Everything that's been happening to you lately... it's been really scary, hasn't it?"

Alex lowered her gaze, suddenly seeming fascinated with the bubbling water. "I... suppose it has," she said softly. "I mean, you grow up with characters and a story you believe to be fictional. It's fun and exciting, often comical, and in the end, you always know the good guys are gonna save the day. But then you come face to face with the real thing and it's not so funny anymore. Sure, it's exciting, but in all the wrong ways."

She tugged nervously on a strand of wet hair, one which Patrick found he suddenly wanted to twirl around his finger. "I've come face to face with what technically amounts to a technophilic terrorist, and I can't tell the police... I can't tell anybody because 'it's not real.' And the worst part is... you don't _know_ if the good guys are gonna save the day."

But slowly, her expression lightened, and Patrick watched her lips spread into a soft smile. "But in some ways, it's cool, too. I mean, Sonic's real. I got to meet my childhood hero. And despite all the horrible stuff, I can't help but think Sonic coming here to our world just might be the best thing that's ever happened to me, especially since my Dad..."

Alex trailed off, chasing the thought away with a shake of her head. She lifted her gaze to meet Patrick's once more.

"So... I'm happy, too. I love that little blue ball of energy, and I know he'll do everything he can to protect me."

Patrick smiled as he considered her words. "I guess he really has a way of making you feel that everything will be alright, as long as he's around, huh?"

"Yeah. Exactly," said Alex, with something of a tender smile. "Even when I was little, long before I had any inkling that such a character truly existed, I always felt like he was there for me somehow." She blushed and rubbed the back of her head. "Heh, I guess that sounds kinda stupid, huh?"

"Not at all," he said gently. He lowered his gaze, thinking about what he wanted to say. After a moment, he said, "Alex, I know we don't know each other _super_ well yet. And maybe this is assumptive of me, but I want you to know that Sonic isn't the only one you can rely on. I might not be able to do everything _he_ can, but I'll do everything I can do to help out in any way. I promise."

At first Alex looked at him with surprise. Then, she grinned at him. "I guess chivalry isn't dead in the 21st century, after all. And you know..." she said with a casual shrug of her shoulders that threatened to make her towel slide down (Oh, this girl just didn't know how to be careful!), "As far as the whole 'not knowing each other super well yet,' well, that can easily change." Smiling, she reached across the tub, placing her hand over his. "Thank you, Patrick."

A blush came over his cheeks as she thanked him. Smiling, his hand flexed ever so slightly, his fingers seeking to entwine with hers. They were having a moment. Such a perfect moment. One in which Patrick couldn't help but revel in. But just before his fingers could entwine with hers, they were interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing in her satchel.

Alex quickly withdrew her hand, as though she'd been caught doing something scandalous. "Shit. Sorry. I have to get that. It could be my mom." She stepped carefully out of the jacuzzi, still holding her towel tightly about her as she dug in her satchel for her phone. Dripping, she answered it and held it to her ear. "Uh... h-hello?"

A familiar voice replied.

"Hey, I hate to interrupt whatever it is you guys are doing..."

Patrick could hear the voice on the other end.

Sonic.

He sighed. Looks like this was the end of his and Alex's alone time.

Alex flushed as though she'd been caught in the middle of something scandalous. "Oh! S-Sorry. Y-Yeah, we were just... getting some fresh clothes and I got carried away by the luxuriousness of the house."

She had something of a blush on her cheeks and what Patrick could only describe as a 'silly little smile' on her face. She even tucked her hair behind her ear in that cute, self-conscious manner. It was almost as though she were talking to Sonic as if he was... No. No, that was ridiculous. Obviously, it was simply that things were moving just a little too quick for her and she was thankful for the distraction.

"We're getting really hungry over here," said Sonic. "And, I don't know about anyone else, but the hungrier I get, the more annoying Knuckles becomes. So, we might need some food here, pronto."

Alex tucked in her lips, trying not to laugh. "Okay. We'll be right there. Just _please_ don't antagonize him, okay? He's had a hard day, too. We _all_ have. And I'm sure Patrick doesn't want to have to explain to his parents later how their property got destroyed. Hang tight, okay, Sonic?" She hung up and turned back around to face Patrick. "We'd better get going, or else it's gonna get all Hidden Palace Zone on your back lawn."

"Hidden... what?"

It had been an awfully long time since Sonic & Knuckles. However, he could easily guess that she meant the two were starting to rub each other the wrong way.

"Okay. Well, you go ahead first. I need to drain the tub and all that. I dug out some of my sister's old clothes that you can wear until the wash is done. Pick whatever works for you. I think it _should_ fit you. You can close the door and change in my parents' bedroom."

"Okay. Thanks, Patrick." With a smile, she left the bathroom, closing the door behind her. For a moment, she leaned against it, taking a deep breath.

_Man... what was I thinking, inviting him into the tub with me, and us practically both naked? That could've gone so badly... if it was anyone else._

But Patrick was a true gentleman. Alex only hoped he wouldn't get any ideas that this meant anything serious... at least not yet. Nevertheless, just thinking about Patrick and the way he'd promised to help her put a smile on her face as she went to study the two outfits laid out on the king-sized canopy bed. These were, apparently, Patrick's sister's clothes.

_Nice of him to let me choose,_ thought Alex, though the decision was obvious.

While both looked like the trendy expensive outfits a rich girl might have, the first was a little _too_ eccentric for Alex's liking. A one-piece spandex leggings/overalls hybrid and a white and black stripped shirt was definitely the sort of thing a girl might wear to piss off her parents. The latter, while still trendy and, judging by the tags, from a department store Alex would be too afraid to even glance at for fear of draining her wallet, was more palatable.

Somewhere between '90s grunge and punk in style, it was a pair of short denim overalls and a baggy black T-shirt made of soft, almost velvety material that Alex wouldn't even know how to wash, along with a pair of black knee-high socks. This was the outfit she was wearing when Patrick knocked on the door to see if it was safe to enter.

"It's cool," she called. "I'm dressed."

The door opened, and there was Patrick in a fresh change of clothes; a pair of faded blue jeans and a gray tank top which said 'Green Creek Academy Track & Field.'

Alex couldn't help gazing at him appreciatively. Even if she _had_ seen him mostly naked, he looked good in a tank top. He had nice toned arms. Alex quickly chased the thought away. She was already trying to forget their impromptu hot tub rendezvous, even if nothing happened worth writing home about. It was just... so impulsive. So unlike her. She wondered if her recent devil-may-care attitude of late might be attributed to spending so much time with her new roommate.

"Well, you chose the cuter of the two, I see," said Patrick, eyeing her up.

"It's alright, I guess. That other one was a bit too... eccentric for me."

"I'm really sorry about the lack of options. My sister used to be... uh... Goth... Punk... Emo... Artsy? I dunno. she mostly just liked pissing off my parents."

Alex nodded in understanding. "The poor, misunderstood rich girl routine, right? I'm sure I'd be pissed off if my parents were never around, too. Though the idea of having anything akin to a 'trust fund' would certainly be a nice compensation."

Patrick snorted and rolled his eyes. "Lily is... well... She's Lily. No matter what. She still calls me every now and then... when she remembers. So, there's that."

"That's something at least, right?" said Alex, trying to cheer him up. "I used to be pretty happy to be an only child. I don't think I would have liked sharing my parents' attention with another sibling. Though, now with Dad gone and Mom sick... I dunno... It might be nice to have a sibling. But I've got my cousin, Liam. I guess he's the closest thing I have to a sibling. I see him almost often enough for him to _be_ my sibling. And now, Tails kinda feels like a kid brother. And Sonic... Well, he's Sonic."

As they headed out of the bathroom and down the stairs, Alex took another glance at his tank top.

"Green Creek Academy," she said. "Sounds fancy."

"Yeah," he said with a smirk and another playful roll of his eyes. "What you'd likely call rich-boy school."

"Track and Field, eh?" Alex nodded to herself. "Now it all makes sense," not seemingly to realize she'd said this last bit out loud.

"Huh? What all makes sense?" Patrick looked down at his shirt, trying to figure out what it was she was commenting on. However, Alex was spared an embarrassing explanation at the ringing of the doorbell.

"Oh," said Patrick. "Must be the pizza. That's good timing. Now maybe we can go settle an ornery hedgehog down."

"Hey," said Alex defensively, though she gave him a playful nudge. " _My_ hedgehog is nowhere _near_ as ornery as _your_ echidna."

"Hey, I may be _friends_ with that echidna, but I certainly don't _claim_ him."

Alex grinned. "All right. Then I'll just add him to _my_ menagerie. I bet I could get him to like _me_ better anyway," she said sticking her tongue out playfully.

"Oh, good. Maybe he can give _you_ terrible advice for our _next_ date."

Soon, the pizza was paid for and Patrick and Alex carried the pies back to the guest house by the pool. "Oh, wow," Alex marveled. "It really _is_ almost like a little house!"

When they entered, they found Sonic sitting in a reclining chair, his pinky finger digging inside his ear while Knuckles stood in front of him, clenching his teeth.

"I _said_ , I was sitting there! I only got up for a moment!"

"Move your feet, lose your seat, Knuckle-head."

Knuckles pounded his fist into his palm. "That's it! On your feet, hedgehog! We settle this NOW!"

Sonic shrugged, still digging in his ear. "Settle _what_ now?"

"YOU'RE FINISHED!" shouted Knuckles, launching himself at Sonic.

"FOOD'S HERE!" shouted Alex, hoping to stop it before Knuckles landed a punch.

"Pizza?" asked Tails, who was perched upon one of the blades of a ceiling fan to stay out of the fray below. "YUM!" He leapt down from his perch and flew past Sonic and Knuckles and landed in front of Alex and Patrick. "Sonic and Knuckles are busy," he said, "So I guess that means more food for us!"

Alex grinned at the young fox. _Good one, Tails,_ she thought appreciatively. The last thing she needed was Sonic and Knuckles destroying Patrick's guest house.

At the talk of food, Sonic perked up. "Food?"

He zipped out of the chair, causing Knuckles to collide with it a second later. The echidna landed in a slumped upside-down position.

"It's about time," said Sonic, tapping his foot. "I hope you didn't pay full price for this for how long it took."

Patrick rolled his eyes. "Hey, man. Ford's Pizzeria is about the only pizza place that delivers out here. They _always_ get a tip, lemme tell you. Besides, _you_ don't get any pizza."

" _What_? Why the hell not?" Sonic demanded.

Patrick passed the pizzas off to Alex, and handed a separate bag to Sonic. " _This_ is for you."

Sonic inspected the bag. He hesitated, giving it a sniff. Then he gasped. "No! You didn't!" He reached inside the bag and pulled out an object covered in foil, which he immediately unwrapped revealing... "You got me chili dogs! You sneaky bastard!"

"Really?" said Alex. "The pizza place has chili dogs?"

Patrick shrugged. "Yeah. They do burgers and fries and stuff, too. They're just especially known for their pizzas. But I thought our little blue guy here might prefer these."

Sonic grinned. "Your tardiness is forgiven... _this_ time."

Alex shot Patrick a playful glare. "You _are_ a sneaky bastard, trying to bribe Sonic like that. Isn't it enough you're stealing my two totally awesome roommates?" She flopped backwards onto a leather couch. "Alas... I have nothing to offer you, Sonic. No such lavish accommodations. I can't compete with Chris Thorndyke here." She threw her arm across her eyes in a melodramatic fashion and delivered her next line just as dramatically. "It's a classic Prince and the Pauper story. In the end, who will earn your love?"

Patrick chuckled as he sat himself on the other end of the couch and grabbed a slice of pizza. "I'm just offering them room and board. I think your love is more important. I'm just a landlord."

"I still love you, Alex!" said Tails with a mouthful of pizza.

Alex lowered her arm and giggled at him. "I love you, too, Tails. Toss me a pizza, won't you— NOT LITERALLY!"

An entire pizza box came whizzing at her, thrown like a Frisbee. Knuckles swooped in and snatched it out of the air before settling back on the ground.

"I'm so sorry, Alex!" said Tails. "It was just a reflex! Whenever Sonic tells me to toss things to him, he always catches it. I wasn't thinking."

"N-No worries," said Alex, rather perturbed at having almost been clobbered by a whole pie.

Knuckles opened the box and looked at its contents. "So... this is pizza..." He reached in and pulled out a slice before handing the box to Alex. "They don't have any with fruit on it, huh?"

"Uh... There's tomato on it," said Patrick. "Tomato is a fruit, right?"

"Yeah, technically," said Alex. "It's, like, an undercover fruit pretending to be vegetable. Ya know, like some sort of espionage. It definitely _tastes_ like I vegetable. I'll only eat a tomato if it's sauce or ketchup." She laid on her side on the couch, her elbow planted and her cheek in her hand as she munched on a slice of pizza.

For a moment, Knuckles just stared at his slice, watching the cheese start to slide off. "Whoa!" He opened his mouth to catch the sliding toppings, chewing thoughtfully for a moment.

"Well?" said Patrick.

"It's good. But it could use some fruit to give it a sweeter flavor."

"Oh, right," said Alex. "You're, like, supposed to like grapes or something, right? I think I read that in a biographical overview somewhere way back in the day."

Knuckles gaped at her. She knew he loved grapes? Such a minute detail! He didn't know whether to be flattered or creeped out.

"Bet grapes would taste pretty gross on pizza, though," she said. "Pineapple's pretty good though. That's one of _my_ favorite toppings."

Knuckles gaped at her, jaw agape. "Wait... that's allowed?"

"Sure," said Patrick. "You can get just about any toppings on a pizza... Within reason, of course. I'll get one with pineapple next time."

"That's an excellent idea!"

Alex grabbed herself another slice of pizza and mowed down on it, closing her eyes rapturously and letting out an, "Mmm... God, I was starving. Nothing as fancy as chicken alfredo," she said, giving Patrick a meaningful look, "But it'll do in a pinch."

Patrick smiled embarrassedly as he reached for the TV remote. "Uh, hey, what do you say we put the TV on, huh?"

Truth be told, he was still horribly embarrassed by the stuff that Knuckles made him do during their dinner date. Eager to put it out of his mind, he turned on the television and they gathered around it like the oddest group of friends, three anthro heroes and two humans, to watch some TV. There was a strange sense of normalcy about it, and one that both Patrick and Alex welcomed after their near brush with calamity... At least until a news segment came on, whose top story featured something that made Patrick practically choke on his pizza.

Alex shot upright on the couch. "Oh shit..."

A news anchor was reporting on what had happened at The Veranda earlier that evening.

"As you can see by this amateur video taken at The Veranda, popular eatery near Scottstown University, three titular characters from the popular video game franchise and recent motion picture, Sonic The Hedgehog, appear to be in mid battle."

The video zoomed in for a closeup of Sonic and Knuckles duking it out on the patio of The Veranda.

"Hey!" said Sonic excitedly. "Is that us? We're on TV!"

But one look at Alex and Tails frowned. "Um... I'm thinking that's not a good thing."

"No," said Alex tremulously. "No, it's not."

Knuckles stared at the screen as he brought his hand up to the back of his head, trailing his fingers over it. "Is my head really that oddly shaped?"

"Two college students, whose identities are currently unknown, appear to be controlling the characters with their phones. Eye witnesses at the scene have concluded the characters in question to be remote controlled animatronics as part of an elaborate demonstration on behalf of, speculatively, a pair of engineering students, possibly from the local college..."

Alex breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, at least my scheme worked. They thought it was exactly what I wanted them to think it was."

But it wasn't over. The news anchor continued.

"Later, patrons were further disrupted when several armed drones appeared and open fired on the three animatronics, forcing frightened diners to flee. Here we can see a third person arrive on the scene, who appears to take the young woman hostage."

The video zoomed in on Sage grabbing Alex and bringing a sword to her throat, and later, a close-up of him kissing her. Now it was Alex's turn to choke on her pizza.

"It is unclear whether this was part of the demonstration or whether this man was a real danger to the young woman. Eye witnesses suspect the former. However, police are not convinced."

The footage then showed the police pointing their guns on Sage and demanding that he surrender.

"As you can see, the man in question boldly approaches the police, ignoring their demands, forcing an officer to open fire. One of the shots appears to clip the man in the shoulder, before he disappears after uttering a phrase that fans of the Sonic franchise might understand."

The video zoomed in on Sage raising his arm into the air and shouting, "CHAOS CONTROL!" before disappearing from sight.

Patrick looked like he was going to be sick. "Oh God, I hope no one I know sees this..."

As if on cue, his phone began alerting him to text messages. Particularly, one from his D&D pal, Bosley, saying, _My friend, ya gone viral,_ with a YouTube link to the very same video shown on the news.

"Oh shit... It's on YouTube."

"Great," said Alex dryly. "Now the whole world can see me getting frenched by that cybernetic freak-show."

Knuckles' eyes narrowed. "A tube of you? I don't understand..."

The news anchor continued their report: "Eye witnesses and authorities are baffled, and a search for the man has commenced. Anyone who sees this man..."

Again, a close-up of Sage.

"...is encouraged to report his whereabouts to police, where he is wanted for questioning. Stay tuned for further—"

"Turn it off," said Alex, setting aside her pizza, suddenly not feeling very hungry. "Please. I just... can't... right now."

Patrick did as she asked, switching off the TV before tossing the remote and slumping into his chair. "Uh... So, everyone apparently knows about _that_ now."

Alex covered her face and groaned. "Oh man... if Mom sees that, she's gonna freak!"

Patrick slid to the edge of his seat and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees and his hands running back through his hair. This situation had just gone from bad to worse. He supposed he should have seen this coming in this age of social media and viral videos. But he had hoped people would've had the good sense to run away and not record video when bullets began to fly. And on top of that, he hated having to watch Sage kiss Alex again. Even if it wasn't up close and in real-time, it still made him nauseous.

It didn't sit well with Sonic either. He was crossing his arms and tapping his foot with an annoyed expression on his face as they all sat there, letting it sink in.

"So," said Sonic in a moment of uncharacteristic seriousness, "We've been exposed. But they apparently think we're just robots."

"Like Robotnik's robots?" said Knuckles, bristling. "I am _no_ robot!"

"If Alex and Patrick are gonna stay out of trouble, we're gonna have to say we are, if we need to! They're our friends and they're doing so much to keep us out of trouble on this world until we can figure things out."

Alex gave Sonic a grateful look, before turning her gaze on Knuckles. "I'm sorry," she said, running a hand through her hair. "It's the only thing I could think of. If they knew you guys were aliens, or really... well, 'fictional' characters from a video game franchise, the military would capture you and run experiments on you. No one wants that. And say what you will about 'fighting them off' or 'they'd have to catch me first,' or what have you, you're all outnumbered. That's a fact. No one's saying you're Robotnik's robots. If anything... you're _my_ robots."

Sonic looked at Alex and Patrick, his expression determined. "Whatever we need to do with this video of us going around... just say it, and we'll do what he have to."

Alex exchanged a glance with Patrick before looking back at Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles, who were all gazing back at her expectantly.

"Well," she sighed. "The best course of action is to do what you've been doing, or at least what you were doing _until_ tonight, that is. Stay out of the public eye. As this circulates, we'll continue to convince anyone who asks that you guys were robots and that it was an engineering demonstration; an experiment gone awry. And we'll further convince them that you guys were, no offense, defunct and we had to scrap you. We can't allow them to have any expectations that you guys will show up again. If anyone got a closer look at you... well, they'd soon find out you aren't robots."

Sonic and Knuckles exchanged glances. Sonic had always been the more positive of the two. He treated Knuckles as a friend, whether the echidna liked it or not. Knuckles had trouble trusting anyone and always believed where Sonic was, trouble followed. It was difficult to say how he would take this.

Tails plopped onto the seat beside Alex and she absently ruffled his hair. "I know it's not an ideal situation, and I hate doing it to you guys, but roaming free just isn't an option. Not if you want to be safe. So, trust me and Patrick. I know that's hard for some of you," she said, her gaze moving to Knuckles specifically, "And I get it. More than you know. But at the very least you've got this huge estate out in the middle of nowhere to run in, and that's better than nothing, right?" She turned to Sonic and gave him a sad smile. "Certainly, better than staying cooped up in a tiny apartment. You won't have to worry about that anymore."

At first, Knuckles' expression was blank, and for a moment Alex held her breath. She wasn't entirely certain how her instructions would be taken. After all, who was _she_ to tell _them_ what to do? She was just some freshman college kid from Earth. And these guys were heroes on _their_ world. What authority did she really have over them? Surely none of them, least of all Knuckles, wanted to be bossed around.

But when Knuckles spoke, his eyes were on Alex. "I made a promise to Patrick," he said, "that I would do what I could to see that you were taken out of harm's way. I failed in my first mission, but that doesn't mean I'm backing out of my promise. If staying here and remaining hidden will accomplish that, then..."

Knuckles glanced briefly at Sonic, wincing at that annoying grin, before looking back at Alex. And to her utter amazement, he placed a hand on his chest and bowed his head. "You have my word."

Patrick was in shock over what he'd just witnessed. Alex, it seemed, had not only convinced the hotheaded echidna, but had appeared to win him over so easily.

"W-Wow..." he murmured.

For a moment, Alex just gaped at the bristly red cryptid. Then, smiling, stuck out her hand. "Knuckles the Echidna, it occurs to me we still haven't been properly introduced. I'm Alex Parker, and I promise to return the favor and do what _I_ can to protect _you_ from the authorities on this world. And..." Chewing her lip and grinning somewhat geekily, she added, "I'd like to be your friend, too... if that's cool with you, that is."

And to everyone's surprise, she managed to put a small smile Knuckles' face as he shook hands with her. But his reply?

"We shall see..."

Alex hadn't honestly expected much. So, she was not at all disheartened by Knuckles' reply, but, on the contrary, encouraged. "In that case, I will make it my mission to _earn_ your friendship," she said with a smile.

Everyone exchanged grinning glances. This interaction had them feeling more upbeat and positive. Patrick leaned back in his seat and smiled. "If that's not progress, I don't know what is. Maybe things will start looking up from here."

That was when Alex's phone rang.

"Crap!" she exclaimed, leaping to her feet and running across the room to her satchel. "That might be Mom. Probably panicking over the news."

But when she took her phone out of her satchel, the number was one she didn't recognize. Typically, she let such calls go straight to her voicemail, but curiosity and the concern that it might be the police reaching out to her for comment, which would certainly be unwise to avoid, prompted her to answer it.

"Um, h-hello?"

She removed herself from the rest of the group, who, with the lightened mood, were getting chatty again. Sticking her finger in her free ear so she could hear better, Alex walked across the room towards the sliding glass door.

"Hello? Hello?"

At first, she didn't hear anything. But then, a voice began to sing a song that struck Alex as significant to her past. But it was being sung slowly, almost ominously, to her over the phone.

"I don't mind you comin' here... And wastin' all my time... 'Cause when you're standin' oh so near... I kinda lose my mind..."

Alex's eyes grew wide. That song... The song by The Cars. It was the one her father used to sing when she was little.

"D-Dad...?"

A word that brought everyone to a standstill. Talking ceased and all eyes fell on Alex. Patrick rose to his feet, looking concerned.

But that was impossible. And the more she listened to the vocalist, the less and less it sounded like her deceased father, and the more it was sounding like another voice, one which was becoming increasingly familiar the longer she listened to it.

"It's not the perfume that you wear... It's not the ribbons in your hair... I don't mind you comin' here... And wastin' all my time..."

Sonic and the others immediately sensed that something wasn't right. Alex's eyes were wide, her face ashen, and she had a white-knuckled grip on her phone, her hand visibly trembling. And she was beginning to flicker.

Knuckles could feel a vibration in the air, one which was quickly rising. "Chaos energy..."

"S-Sage?" Alex whispered.

_But that's... that's Dad's song! How does he know that song? Why is he singing it?_

She just had to know! And it was in that moment, with that very thought, and one brief second where her wide eyes met Sonic's...

"Alex, no!"

He wasn't fast enough to stop her.

Another flicker and Alex disappeared, her phone hitting the floor with a clatter.

"ALEX!!!"


	26. Chapter 26

It was like she blinked, and a second later, she was somewhere else entirely. Although she'd done this once or twice before (three times counting the time she fell asleep doing it), it was no less alarming. Disoriented, Alex spun around in a circle.

She was standing on an abandoned beach. The one on the shore of North Lake, far off the beaten path; specifically, the route Robotnik's vehicle had taken before lifting into the air and flying across the lake to his invisible Robo Dome.

"Sh-Shit..."

_Why'd I come here of all places?!_

Alex gazed out at the lake, at the sun setting on the horizon, wondering if Robotnik could see her from his invisible base and fearing that it might be possible. Bathed in twilight, the wind whipping at her hair, she stood on the darkening beach, feeling the pebbles and driftwood beneath her socks and knowing that she was in real trouble.

For a moment, she thought she was alone, but the moment passed when she heard a voice coming to her on the breeze, singing that same song.

"I guess you're just what I needed... I needed someone to feed... I guess you're just what I needed..."

Alex turned in the direction of the voice. Not far from here stood an old derelict lifeguard station, its wood in a major state of decay. As Alex stared at the structure, Sage stepped out from behind it.

"I needed someone... to bleed."

He was still wearing the nice dress clothes and long black trench coat he'd been wearing during their encounter at The Veranda. Only now, she saw the shoulder had a hole in it and his arm was pressed firmly to his torso, as if he were favoring it.

At the sight of him, Alex was a mix of fear, pity, and revulsion. Fear, for she knew he intended to take her to Robotnik; pity for his wound, even though he was not human, for she knew that he once had been, and she wondered, perhaps, if it pained him in any way; and revulsion for she realized how he'd trapped her.

He'd used her father's song against her. He'd tapped into her Chaos Energy by frightening her, for he knew quite well how it worked, and he manipulated her destination by toying with her emotions, making her think of her father and triggering her curiosity to get her to appear right where he wanted her.

Well, it worked. In spite of her fear, she was curious, damn curious how he could possibly know that song and what it meant to her. Slowly, she backed away as he approached, maintaining her distance at all times, syncing her steps with his as though it were a strange sort of dance, and never taking her eyes off him.

"H-How?" she asked tremulously. "How do you know that song?"

Sage continued to approach. If he so chose, he could likely rush at her and grab her if he really wanted to. And yet, he didn't make any such move. Instead, the handsome android slowly moved forward, as if he was methodically taking his time with her. He could see the fear on the girl's face. And yet there were a mix of other emotions.

"You're Just What I've Needed. A song by The Cars. When I placed you in a daze in the Master's car, you started singing it. And when you sang it... It struck a chord with me. I believed it must be an important song to you."

As he continued to approach with such a slow, methodical grace, Alex was reminded of a panther preparing to pounce on its prey. She continued to back away, knowing that if he touched her, it was over for her. If he touched her, he'd put her to sleep or place her in a daze. She couldn't let that happen.

Sage tilted his head as he looked at her. "And yet... when I, myself, began to sing the song, I came to the realization... that I had heard that song before. But I have no knowledge as to when or where. Now _that_ is something I find quite intriguing."

Alex had something of an inkling. Sage was a cybernetic recreation of Robotnik's son. He would have been much the same age he was now, back when he was a real flesh and blood human on Earth, circa the 1980s, as it was around then that Edgar Roman sent Charles Boddick and his family into another dimension. The human that was once Charles' Boddick's son may well have heard that song before, and possibly liked it. Robotnik had said his attempts to revive his sons as cybernetic beings was a failure. But now... Alex was starting to wonder if that might not entirely be true.

During her musings, Sage had closed more of the gap between them, forcing Alex, with a gasp, to retreat a little faster. He smiled at her. It was a handsome though truly wicked smile.

"But seeing as the song has importance to you, I felt it was perfect to use as... well... bait, for lack of a better term."

"My dad used to sing me that song," she said tremulously, tears filling her eyes. "You were cruel to use that... cruel to use something so precious to me in such a way." But such an accusation had very little bearing on Sage.

In her anguish, Alex wasn't paying attention, and with one more step backwards, she tripped over a bit of driftwood and fell to her bottom. Sage grinned. This was excellent. Now she was a perfect target. Her eyes were wide and frightened, her tears shimmering in the twilight as she gazed up at her pursuer. He was getting closer. Close enough to touch her. He reached towards her.

"S-Stop! Wait!" In desperation, there was only one thing she could think of. "I know how you know that song!" she cried. "But if you touch me, I won't tell you!"

Sage slowly withdrew his hand and simply stood over her. He did not, however, back up. Not entirely. "You really think you can use a bargaining chip with me in such a manner? What makes you so certain that my knowledge of the song is truly so interesting, or that it would actually interest me, specifically?"

"Because you said yourself that you found it intriguing!" she said quickly. _And you withdrew your hand,_ she thought but didn't dare say out loud.

Sage might have a good poker face, but his actions spoke louder than words and, in this case, louder than his expression, which Alex had long since learned was almost always stoic.

"And I know," she insisted. "I do. You're not just an android. You're a cybernetic being, one who was meant to be a replacement for Robotnik's son."

Sage's stoic expression barely shifted in response to her words. It was almost as though this revelation did not surprise him. Was that something he possibly already knew?

"Robotnik thinks you and your brother... Stark... were both failures. But I don't think that's entirely true. That song, it was popular in the '80s. You, whatever name you used to go by, were a flesh and blood human living here on Earth during that time. It's possible you heard that song many times before, and that you liked it. And if you truly _did_ realize that you somehow knew that song, that you'd heard it once before... then it means you are far more than just an android."

This time, Sage's brow actually budged, removing the stoic expression from his face, however slightly. It gave Alex time to get to her feet and slowly begin back up once more.

"Go home, Sage... if that's really your name. You're broken. Go home to your father and fix your arm... and let me go."

"Father..." He said the word carefully, as though trying it out for the first time or, perhaps, remembering it.

This realization seemed to give him true pause, and for a moment, Alex thought maybe she'd done more than distract him. For a moment, she thought she might have gotten through to the man inside the android. But then, his gaze narrowed. The arm that was still fully operational lifted out to his side.

"No. I cannot let you go." In the blink of an eye, his hand reshaped and that familiar blade took its place.

Alex's face paled. "B-But..."

"Fath-- My... The Master needs you for his plans. I cannot return empty handed."

"S-Sage..." said Alex, attempting to reason with him again. But it was no use. He stepped towards her, his sword drawn. Alex turned and ran.

This was bad. Really, _really_ bad. The beach was pebbly with lots of driftwood and bits of stray grass poking out of coarse white sand. And she was in socks. Could she really outrun him? She already knew the answer. She'd failed to outrun him and Stark before. Just because Sage was injured, it made no difference. The result would be the same. But survival instinct took over, and still she ran... for there was nothing else she could do.

Sage did not run after her. Instead, he followed at a leisurely pace, as though he were merely stalking her. As she ran, Sage called out to her in an amplified voice.

"Run as fast and as far as you'd like, Miss Parker. You're scared. And because of it... I can sense you. The chaos inside of you is pulsing. There's nowhere you can go that I won't find you!"

Alex pushed herself to run faster, wincing at the feeling of sharp pebbles and debris beneath her feet. Beyond the shore was a grove of aspen trees. Not daring to glance behind her to see how close he was, Alex plunged into the wood, hoping this would at least slow him down. Here the ground was softer, grassier, the earth smoother, and Alex was able to weave between the trees with greater ease. She couldn't stop. She mustn't! And yet the more she ran, the darker the sky above her became until, with the added tree coverage, she could barely see more than five feet in front of her.

"It is pointless to hide, Alexandra..." The way he said her name, it was almost in a tantalizing manner. "Come... Come out to me."

Alex ran faster, harder, until finally she could go no further. Tired and out of breath, she took refuge behind a tree, leaning back against it, breathing heavily. Her feet hurt and her legs felt like jell-o. Sage had been stalking her slowly. She had outrun him. But with the stitch in her side and her lungs screaming in protest, she had no choice but to stop.

It was dark in the wood and she could hear Sage shuffling through in the distance. He was getting closer. Could she truly hide from him? Or would her chaos energy lead him right to her? She had to find a way to suppress it. Often, it was tied into her emotions. Perhaps if she just tried to calm herself.

_Easier said than done, Alex,_ she thought.

But nevertheless, she closed her eyes and took long, slow, deep breaths, trying to calm her racing heart and her racing mind, both of which was proving to be incredibly difficult with Sage's voice coming to her on the breeze, calling out to her seductively, telling her to come to him. Alex leaned her head back against the tree, her hair snagging on the rough bark as tears streaked down her cheeks.

_Please don't find me... please don't find me..._

Sage moved slowly through the trees, searching for his prey. If it was his 'brother,' Stark would just be tearing through the trees, knocking them over and destroying nature like a human-shaped bulldozer. But Sage was far more subtle. Sage moved silently, which made him an excellent assassin, or, in this particular instance... kidnapper.

As Alex leaned against the tree, trying to calm herself and praying that Sage wouldn't find her, she came to the realization that she could no longer hear him stalking her through the woods. Perhaps he'd gone the wrong way! He must have lost track of her after all! But this moment of elation was short-lived, for soon, she heard his voice singing softly, like a whisper on the wind.

"It's not the perfume that you wear... It's not the ribbons in your hair..." He stalked slowly, his footfalls nearly imperceptible as he approached. "I don't mind you comin' here..."

Alex tensed. She held her breath. Which direction was he coming from? His voice was getting closer and closer, but it seemed to be coming from multiple directions at once, making it impossible to determine his location. Was he singing this just to scare her? Just to get a rise out of her so he could easily sense her out?

"And wastin' all my time..."

Sage grew silent as his eyes fell closed. For a moment, Alex heard nothing. It was as though Sage had simply disappeared entirely. Then, very softly whispered, she heard him.

"I guess..."

Trembling, Alex was just turning her head to try to look around the tree behind her only to find a blade with a glowing red edge at her throat, and a voice, whispering so softly, so seductively in her ear.

"...you're just what I needed."

Alex gasped. Sage had found her! He was standing behind the tree, his sword at her throat and his lips at her ear. Alex could feel his hot breath – was that real or simulated? – against her ear. It sent hot and cold shivers through her core.

Sage could feel her trembling. He could sense her chaos energy. It was in a constant state of flux. Fear reigned dominant within her, but beneath it, just below the surface... curiosity... inquisitiveness... melancholia... and a hint of desire. Though her body stiffened, her lower lip trembled and she closed her eyes.

"P-Please..." she whimpered, a single tear rolling down her cheek. _Please don't do this! Oh, God... I wanna go home!_

If only she could tap into Chaos Control! But she still hadn't perfected it! She had yet to successfully utilize it!

_Sonic... Patrick..._

Sage had her just where he wanted her. The only problem was, his other arm was out of commission. Damn that cop who put a bullet through his shoulder. He wasn't built like Stark. He wasn't a juggernaut. He was designed to be stealthy and to infiltrate. It was Stark that was made to survive an explosion. Sage couldn't just reach around and caress Alex's face to put her at ease and make her fall into his arms. He'd have to try a different approach.

Keeping his lips against her ear, his warm breath continued to dance across her skin. "Sweet Alexandra... it doesn't have to be a painful experience. Come without a fuss. I will see to it that no harm will come to you."

Then, she felt something else. Sage's lips slowly grazed along the outer rim of her ear as he whispered seductively into it. "Alexandra... In my own way, I will protect you. If you'll have me."

What did that mean? Was he serious? Or was this just some programmed tactic to make her weak and pliable to his will? It didn't matter. No matter how curious she was about the man beneath the android called 'Sage,' Alex refused to be taken to Robotnik, and she refused to allow this android to manipulate her any longer.

"What say you, Alexandra?"

Alex only had one response. Closing her eyes tightly, she spoke just two words.

"Chaos Control."

And with a flash, she disappeared.

Sage's eyes went wide. How? How had she done it? He didn't even detect a rise in her Chaos Energy. It was almost as if... She could control it now!?

Sage let out a cry of frustration before slashing through the narrow aspen with his blade, causing the tree to topple over. It had been his last-ditch effort to apprehend the girl. This had been his only shot, pure seduction. And he'd failed. He didn't wish to go back to Robotnik with nothing to show for it, but it would seem there was no helping it. Sage wasn't used to failing so miserably.

Throughout all this, Sage never hung up on the call he'd made to Alex. Now, he noticed the green light blinking on his arm-mounted device that he used to make the phone call. It would seem there was a muted call on the other end. Curious, he unmuted it, only to catch the hedgehog in mid sentence.

"...is she? Whoever this is, if this is _you_ , Eggman, you can bet that I'm coming for you! You'd better keep your grubby mitts off of Alex, if you know what's good for you!"

Sage smirked.

***

Back at Patrick's, Sonic had been yelling into the phone, desperate to find out what had happened. After several agonizing minutes of muffled voices and ominous sounds, he finally got a reply.

"Worry not, hedgehog, for your precious Alexandra is safe from my grasp. She managed to Chaos Control away from me."

Wide-eyed, Sonic glanced at Tails and Knuckles for confirmation.

Knuckles replied first.

"I just felt it. A spike in Chaos Energy... Chaos Control..."

Tails was glaring at the phone in Sonic's hand as though if he did it hard enough, Sage could feel his wrath. His hands were clenched into trembling fists at his sides, but when Knuckles confirmed that he felt a spike in Chaos Energy, Tails quickly brought out his scanner to confirm.

He was impressed that Alex had managed to escape via Chaos Control, especially since she didn't have much control over when and where it happened. But if she'd Chaos Controlled... exactly where had she Chaos Controlled _to_? She certainly hadn't come back to Patrick's house.

"She may be safe for now," Sage continued. "But not for much longer. The Chaos Energy within her will make sure of that. I can sense her anywhere. She'll be ours soon enough."

Sonic grit his teeth. "You stinkin'..."

But before he could say more, the android ended the call.

Sonic looked at his young fox friend. "Tails! Can your scanner detect if she's nearby?"

Tails nodded. "I'm picking up a high Chaos Energy reading a few miles northwest from here," he said. "It could be her. Probably."

Patrick stood nearby, feeling useless. There wasn't a single thing he could do to help. Hearing that Alex managed to give that wicked android the slip gave him some relief. But even now...

Tails glanced up at his worried friends. "She really did it, Sonic! She Chaos Controlled all on her own! But she didn't quite make it back here. She may be lost. And scared." He handed Sonic the Chaos Emerald tracker. "Here. You can get to her faster than we can. Bring her back safely, okay, Sonic?"

"Right! You don't have to tell me twice! I'm gone!"

"Wait!" called Patrick.

Sonic paused, glancing back at him.

"Uh... Is there anything I can do?"

Sonic shook his head, feeling a little bad that Patrick, in this case, was helpless. "Sorry. Just sit this out! I'll get Alex back here safe and sound!"

"But—"

Sonic never heard, as he zoomed off at top speed.

Knuckles placed a hand on Patrick's shoulder.

"In this case, it's best to leave it to the hedgehog. He's faster than any of us. Don't worry, he'll find her."


	27. Chapter 27

When Alex initiated Chaos Control, she'd been thinking desperately of Sonic and, in particular, Patrick. It seemed logical that the best way to chaos control to where you wanted to go would be by way of focusing on that person or place. And yet, when next she opened her eyes, she was unfamiliar with her surroundings... what she could see of them, anyway. A dark forest, but not the grove of aspens in which she'd been running from Sage.

From what she could tell, this forest was bigger, thicker, full of much larger trees – pines, sycamores, and oaks. Alex had no idea where she was, but it certainly seemed as though she'd missed the mark. This wasn't Patrick's property. Had she even gotten close? She had no way of knowing.

She didn't think she had it in her to attempt Chaos Control again, and a part of her was too nervous to try. Who knew where she might end up next? She certainly didn't want to risk warping back to the beach at North Lake. But trying to find her way out of these woods on foot seemed impossible. It was just far too dark. And without a compass or her phone...

Her phone! She'd dropped it back at Patrick's guest house!

_I really am lost,_ she thought dismally.

There was just no way out of these dark woods. Not unless someone managed to find her. And, unfortunately, that was the best Alex could hope for. With a hopeless wail, Alex crumpled to the ground. And it was there she lay, curled onto her side in the grass, sobbing as the lyrics of an old song, once sung by a man she so dearly loved, and now tainted by the lips of a machine who was no longer a man, played in her head.

***

Sonic had taken off from Patrick's pool house, and this time it wasn't just to zip around the property. No. This time, he had a mission. It was late. It was getting quite dark. Most the daylight had been burned a long time ago. And somewhere, Alex was out there all alone. She was probably scared. She might even be hurt. There was no telling what Sage had done to her.

Sonic kept Tails' Chaos Emerald tracker on hand, using it to locate the strongest trace of chaos energy in the vicinity. "Need... to go... faster!!"

He pushed himself even more, running fast enough to make the trees bend and the dirt and grass kick up into a cloud behind him. It took him a little long than he would have liked, but finally the signal led him to a dense bit of woods. Sonic, heedless of danger, zoomed into the forest. She was close. He knew it. Soon, he saw a faint glow. And in the midst of that glow was a frightened girl, tightly curled up on her side.

"Alex!!"

At the sound of her name, Alex sat up. "S-Sonic? Sonic! Is that you?"

She couldn't see very well in the dark, but she heard footsteps. Then, as he drew closer, she could see him. It was as though someone had shined a flashlight on him. Alex didn't know where the light source was coming from, but she didn't care. With a cry of relief, she threw her arms around him and sobbed.

"S-Sonic..." she hiccoughed, sounding so much like a little girl; perhaps the same little girl he'd once seen in a photo album, smiling over a Sonic The Hedgehog cake with her father's arm around her. "Sonic, you found me!"

Sonic wrapped his arms around her, hugging her back just as tightly. "Of course, I found you. Did you ever doubt me?"

He noticed Alex was glowing, but addressing it was the last thing on his mind. He was grateful for the glow, for it acted like something of a beacon, leading him right to her. With this, however, came the realization that a much more dangerous person could have found her as well, and more than ever Sonic was grateful for the gift of his speed.

"It's okay, Alex," he assured her, feeling her trembling in his arms. "I'm here now. You're going to be just fine. Nobody's gonna hurt you now."

This made Alex bawl even harder, but not because she was upset. Just relieved. She felt so safe when Sonic was around. It was a wonder she'd ever survived without him before. Though, she supposed before he showed up, she'd never had to deal with evil megalomaniacs and android assassins.

Sonic took a deep breath. This was an unusual situation for him. He wasn't used to feeling so scared, but he'd been genuinely frightened for Alex. Gradually, Sonic separated from her enough to bring a hand up to her cheek, caressing it gently as his big green eyes gazed into hers.

"You need to quit disappearing on me, kiddo."

Though he called her 'kiddo,' Alex took no offense. Right now, she felt very much like a little kid, and she was okay with that. Right now, she just wanted to be a little girl. She was little Alex and her Sonic doll had come to life, and he was here to protect her in her father's place. Alex's eyes crinkled and more tears slipped down her cheeks as she nuzzled her face into Sonic's palm.

"After this," she said softly. "I may never want to leave your side again, Sonic. Y-You h-have n-no idea... what he... what he..." Then, bursting into a fresh wave of sobs, Alex threw her arms around him again. He was so safe and warm. She never wanted to leave this warm, fuzzy embrace.

Sonic didn't know what Sage had done. He wasn't sure he wanted to know. All that mattered was that Alex was in emotional peril. And, right now, she really needed him. Sonic just held her tightly, bringing one of his gloved hands to the back of her head and gently pushing his fingers through her hair.

"It's okay, Alex. You're okay now. I'm not gonna let anyone hurt you again. I swear it."

At his assurances, Alex gradually appeared to calm. Slowly, she pulled back and gazed into his eyes. They were close enough that their noses were touching. As Alex gazed into his big green eyes, that feeling of warmth and safety returned.

"Sonic..." she murmured softly.

The sound of his name on her tongue brought a warmth to Sonic's cheeks. For moment, she just gazed silently at him, as though studying him. A range of curious emotions traveled across her face, ones which he wasn't quite certain how to read. Whatever happened, he'd let her do what felt right for her. But then, Alex's brow furrowed.

"Sonic? What's that strange glow?"

"Actually, Alex... that strange glow is you."

She glanced down at herself. "Whoa... I'm lit up like a firefly! I didn't even notice."

"I haven't seen that happen since... A Chaos Emerald was around!" Sonic lifted Tails' emerald tracker and looked at the screen. "Hey, I think there's an emerald around here! When you chaos controlled, you must've been drawn near another emerald!"

"Maybe that's why I didn't quite make it back to Patrick's," she mused. "I got stuck on an emerald. How close was I, though? I tried really hard to think of you guys to get back."

"You weren't too bad. If I had to guess, I'd say you were off by a few miles."

Alex's eyebrows lifted. "A few miles? Huh. I guess that isn't so bad. Maybe I'll actually get the hang of this one day."

Sonic glanced at Tails' scanner, before looking up at Alex once more. "How about it? You were able to feel the white emerald? Can you feel this one too?" He didn't let her see where the emerald was on the screen. Instead, he was curious if she could feel it out again, like last time. It was almost as though he were taking it upon himself to train her just a little.

"I don't know, Sonic," she sighed. "After everything that's happened, I'm not sure I know which way is up anymore. But I'll give it a try."

Alex closed her eyes and took a long, deep breath through her nose and slowly exhaled through her mouth, trying to calm herself and find her center. With her mind clear, she thought she could hear a faint ringing in her ears. She could almost feel a strange tugging sensation. Alex opened her eyes and turned around, pointing her finger deeper into the woods.

"That way, I think... maybe."

Sonic followed her direction without question, even though Alex herself was uncertain. He really must trust her ability to find the emerald, particularly since he wasn't even consulting Tails' emerald tracking gizmo. They continued deeper into the woods, following Alex's feelings and senses. As they proceeded, Sonic's ear twitched.

"Hey... you hear that? It sounds like a creek or something. A stream. There's water nearby. This place is called Green Creek, right? Maybe we found the creek itself?"

Sonic made sure not to go too fast so that Alex could keep up, but he was always a few steps ahead of her until he took a step that led him slipping off a bank and into the creek.

"WHOA!!" There was the sound of a splash followed by, "WHAAAH!! HELP! HELP, I'M DROWNING! I'M GONNA GET SWEPT AWAY! HELP!"

"SONIC!" Alex ran after him and skidded to halt. He was standing in waist-deep water. And there was hardly any current to speak of. For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Alex giggled.

Carefully, she allowed herself to slide down the embankment. Her glow was getting brighter, and so too was a bright turquoise light coming from beneath the gently flowing stream. Wordlessly, Alex grabbed Sonic around the waist and lifted him out of the water and set him gently back on the bank.

"Oh," said Sonic, realizing the truth of the situation. He'd simply fallen into a small body of water and immediately assumed he was done for. "Heh. Uh, thanks for that." Now that he'd properly embarrassed himself, he just stood there with his arms crossed, trying to pretend like he didn't just make an ass of himself.

Taking off her socks and tossing them aside, Alex waded into the water. The turquoise glow was so strong it permeated the water, making the entire creek bed glow. Alex tracked the emerald using the power of her own glow. She knew she was getting closer the brighter she got. Finally, she stooped and reached into the water, then plucked out the turquoise emerald. Silently, she held it up for Sonic to see.

"Yeah! Way to go, Alex!"

As she carried it back to him, Sonic noticed that her glow had changed to match the color of the emerald. "Whoa," he said. "It's almost like you adapt to whatever emerald you're holding. You're all... What's that? Aqua... colored... or whatever."

"Aquamarine," she said, tossing him the emerald. "What's that, three emeralds now? We're on a bit of a roll, aren't we?"

Sonic was happy to see a smile return to her face. It immediately lifted _his_ spirits, too. "Yeah. Who knows? Maybe we'll find more before Eggman gets his mitts on them."

It seemed scavenging for emeralds really put Alex in a chipper mood. She was back to her usual self again. She rejoined Sonic at the bank of the creek and took a seat beside him to put her socks back on. Though, at this point, Sonic noticed she had become rather subdued again.

"Um... how exactly are we getting back to Patrick's, Sonic?" she asked softly.

Sonic seemed to get something of a mischievous smirk on his face.

"What?" she asked. "What is it?"

"How about we let your chaos energy take the rest of the night off?" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Sonic?"

When next he opened his eyes, Alex saw them flash from green to blue, almost like an electric spark. Then, just as he had back at Edgar Roman's place, he hoisted her into his arms. Alex gasped, then giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his admittedly small, shoulder.

"Let's head home the old-fashioned way! Just hold onto the emerald for me. You always said that holding onto them makes you feel better, right?"

"I think holding onto _you_ makes me feel even better, Sonic," she said softly. "How do you do it anyway? I mean, our size difference alone... It doesn't hurt you?"

"Nope. In fact, right now, you barely weigh anything. As for how... Monk taught me other ways to make use of the power that I have. I mostly use it for speed and agility, but he also taught me how to distribute it into strength. I can't really explain it, but I can sure as hell do it."

"Huh," said Alex, fascinated. "Sounds like chi." She tightened her grip on him and smiled softly. "In that case... It's okay if I allow myself to enjoy this, right?"

In lieu of an answer, Sonic offered her a winning smile as he turned his head to hers. His eyes roamed over her face for a moment, as though searching the precious secrets hidden there.

"Ready?" he asked her.

Seized by a compulsion, Alex kissed him on the nose. Sonic's eyes were wide. His cheeks felt especially warm as he gazed into her now turquoise eyes, shimmering in the glow of the emerald.

"Don't let go," she whispered.

He answered her in a tone just as soft.

"Never."

Alex blushed at his single-word response. She wondered if he understood the implication of her words, and in turn, she wondered at the implication of his. In the end, it didn't matter. She was in the safest possible place she could be – in her hero's arms. As he readied himself to run, Alex could feel kinetic energy rising within him. She could feel it flowing into her, too. The hair was rising on her arms, and even the Chaos Emerald, which she'd stored securely within the front chest pocket of her overalls, was responding to him.

Sonic's green eyes flashed a brief blue before he took off running. Squealing, Alex tightened her grip as he took off through the trees. He started at a regular pace, which, to Alex, was still a very swift run. But for Sonic, this was starting slow. The longer he ran, the faster he went. With the turquoise glow from the Chaos Emerald, Sonic had enough light to lead the way through the dark woods. Alex saw the shapes of trees rushing past them as he ran. Somehow, despite how fast he was going, he managed to dodge each one with ease, never slowing his momentum. And the whole time, Sonic had a carefree smile on his face and his arms held Alex firmly, ensuring that at no point would she ever touch the ground.

At first, Alex was admittedly a little frightened, though not as terrified as she'd once been the day they'd escaped Robotnik's drones back at Edgar Roman's place. And the longer Sonic ran, the more at ease she became. In some ways, it was exhilarating. In other ways, it was simply... nice. She rested her head in the crook of his shoulder and closed her eyes.

Sonic loved the feeling of Alex holding so tightly to him. Like he was her anchor. Her rock. He was her hero. And Sonic wanted to be everything he could be for her. He felt a strange patter of water droplets flying up and hitting his furry cheeks as he ran. Was Alex crying?! But when he glanced down at her, despite the tears, there was a contented smile on her face.

"I wish this would never end," she murmured, sleepily, not knowing whether he could even hear her over the rush of the wind. Then, as if it was a testament to how much she truly trusted him, and just how safe she really felt, she dozed a little. And yet, her arms never slackened around him. He was her Sonic. And so long as he was near... she was safe.

Sonic smiled to himself. He didn't want this to end either. And as such, he slowed down. Just a little. And not only that, he changed course, taking a longer route back to Patrick's house. Why not let this last just a little while longer?

Perhaps it was a little silly; she a young woman just crossing the threshold into adulthood, being lulled to sleep like a small child on a car ride. But Alex looked so content, and Sonic liked holding her. The beating of their hearts in rhythm to their harmonious feelings made the emerald between them shine all the brighter, leading the way home.

***

Knuckles stood in the doorway of the guest house like a sentinel, looking out into the night to see if Sonic and Alex were on their way back. Patrick, however, had no such composure. Instead, he paced back and forth, still horribly worried about Alex.

"I don't like this," he said. "He's been gone too long. What if he doesn't find her? Where are they?"

Knuckles turned around to face Patrick. "You need to stop. You're going to worry yourself into a fit. And you'll make a rut in your floor. They'll be here. For all his faults, Sonic always helps those in need." Despite his conviction, his efforts seemed ineffectual at calming the young man, and the echidna himself couldn't help casting worried glances out the door.

Tails leapt off the couch with an excited smile. "They're back!" he exclaimed.

Sure enough, when Patrick and Knuckles turned around, they saw Sonic standing just outside the door in front of the pool with Alex cradled safely in his arms. And they were positively glowing.

Patrick pulled open the sliding glass door and called out. "Sonic! Alex! Thank God! What happened?" He barely seemed to notice the fact that they were engulfed in an aquamarine glow. He had a single focus; all he cared about was Alex.

Knuckles on the other hand, was awed. "The Chaos Power... it's so strong." Then, he spotted it. "A Chaos Emerald! Where did _that_ come from?"

At first, Sonic didn't answer any of their questions. Instead, he simply smiled and walked inside. He carried Alex to the couch and laid her down upon it, gently removing her arms from around his neck.

"Is she okay?" asked Patrick.

"She's alright. Just exhausted. It seems Alex was trying to Chaos Control back here, but she got side tracked by that Chaos Emerald." Sonic tossed the handheld computer back to Tails, glad of its use in finding Alex, but also happy to be relieved of it. He hated relying on technology to find his way around. He'd much rather be free to explore and run on his own feelings.

Patrick knelt beside the couch, just looking at Alex and making sure she was alright. Aside from a few scrapes, some mud, and torn socks on her feet, she seemed okay. It was as Sonic said; she was exhausted. And only now did he notice she was glowing with the turquoise Chaos Emerald in her hands.

"Wow..." he murmured, gently brushing hair from her face. She was beautiful. Almost like an angel. Patrick was pretty certain he'd never seen anything more lovely.

Tails perched himself upon the arm of the couch, gazing down at Alex with a concerned frown. "I'm really worried about her, you guys. These spikes in her Chaos Energy are affected by her emotional state. There's no way she can have complete control over it. And if she keeps Chaos Controlling... well, uncontrollably... she could really wear herself down. It can't be good for her. But on a more serious note..." He lifted his gaze to Sonic, Knuckles, and Patrick. "You heard what Sage said. They can find her. They can track her. It's just like me tracking Chaos Emeralds with my device," he said, holding up his Emerald Tracker. "Anywhere she goes... they'll find her."

Patrick cast a worried look at Tails. "What do we do?"

Tails rested his chin on his fist, tilting his head thoughtfully as he gazed down at Alex. "If only there was a way to suppress her Chaos Energy, at least keep it in check. But the only thing that could do that is the Master Emerald. It has the power to neutralize the energy of the Chaos Emeralds. A shame that it's on Angel Island." He sighed and shook his head, his big blue eyes fraught with worry. "I'm at a loss, you guys. But Alex... is in grave danger."

"Then," said Patrick, frowning. "Those android bastards will keep coming for her..."

"No," said Knuckles. "There is a way that we might be able to get them off her trail."

Sonic, who was leaning against the couch by Alex's legs, tilted his head inquisitively. "How do we do that? It's like Tails said, the Master Emerald is back on Angel Island."

Wordlessly, Knuckles grabbed his patchwork bag and loosened the leather string that kept it closed. He let the bag drop to the floor. The white and purple Chaos Emeralds toppled out. But with them came several green, glistening crystalline shards.

Sonic leaned forward, his eyes wide. "Knuckles... is that...?"

"The shards of the Master Emerald," said Knuckles. "When Robotnik gathered the seven emeralds, I could feel their power rising and fluctuating. I knew something was about to happen. I just didn't know what. So, I shattered the Master Emerald, thinking it might be handy to use on the go. Maybe to negate whatever Robotnik was planning. Obviously, that didn't happen. But now, perhaps I can fulfill my promise."

"Wow!" exclaimed Tails. "But I thought the pieces usually went _everywhere_ when you shattered it."

Knuckles tried his best to hide the agitated expression on his face as he grumbled through his teeth. "Yeah... Yeah, they do..."

He reached into his bag and took out a length of leather cord. Then, taking a shard of the Master Emerald, he tightly wound the cord around it, making something of a necklace. "This will not only suppress Alex's Chaos Energy, but it should also mask it from any Chaos Scanners."

Tails grinned. "Knuckles! That's brilliant! Quick! Put it around her neck. But careful not to wake her." He exchanged a glance with Patrick and Sonic, positively beaming. "Oh boy... When Alex wakes up and finds out Knuckles gave her a piece of the Master Emerald, she's totally gonna geek out! Right, Sonic?"

"You bet she will, lil' bro! Knuckles... this is damn decent of you, man! Looks like you're a good guy after all."

Knuckles shot an irritable glance at Sonic, one which seemed to be trying to hide how he truly felt. "Don't forget," he reminded him, "This isn't to help _you_ , hedgehog. She just doesn't deserve this kind of trouble."

"You're a good friend, Knuckles," said Patrick, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I knew you really cared."

Knuckles merely grumbled as he leaned over Alex, gently tying the leather cord around her neck. The moment he did, the green gem gave a brief pulse and Alex's glow from her proximity to the Chaos Emerald slowly dwindled.

"Wow," murmured Tails, gazing at his emerald detector. "It's working already. My tracker is showing only three Chaos Emeralds here. Alex's Chaos Energy readings are almost entirely gone! Practically non-existent. You did it, Knuckles!"

In his excitement, Tails was a little too loud. Alex began to stir, but she didn't awaken. She merely rolled over onto her side, murmuring incoherently.

"S-Sorry," Tails whispered. "Anyway, I think Alex has the right idea. I'm beat. I could really use some sleep. How 'bout you guys?"

"Not a bad idea," said Sonic. "It's been a long day."

Patrick nodded, taking out his phone. "I think I'll text my mom, in case she _does_ actually come home, to let her know I'm here. Hopefully she hasn't seen any of that stuff on the news. Then, crashing for the night does sound good."

Knuckles turned away from the group. It wasn't easy giving up a shard of the Master Emerald. But Alex seemed like a sweet girl, and if he could do something to keep her out of danger, well, that was his duty as a 'guardian,' wasn't it?

Granted, he'd never actually thought himself a guardian of another _person_ before. But it was just well. It was the exact purpose that he had brought the Master Emerald shards with him; for suppressing and neutralizing Chaos Energy. A small satisfied smile came to his face as he gathered up the shards and the two emeralds.

"Hey Knux."

Knuckles glanced at Sonic as the hedgehog tossed the turquoise emerald to him.

"If those Master Shards are keeping those other two emeralds hidden, we might as well keep them together, huh?"

Knuckles held the turquoise emerald in his sizable fist as he looked at Sonic, who was trusting him with this task. The echidna offered a small nod in return. "Okay. I'll do that." He slipped the emerald into his bag with the others.

"Get some rest, Knuckles. Something tells me that we haven't seen the last of Sage and the rest of Eggman's thugs."

With a simple, "Hm," Knuckles left the house, closing the glass door behind him. Knowing the reclusive echidna, he was likely off to look for a high place to keep watch on the property, the way he did on Angel Island.

With Knuckles meandering off, Tails looking for a comfy place to sleep, and Patrick taking a moment to text his mother, Sonic was left alone with Alex. He got up from the couch and gently tucked a pillow beneath the girl's head. As he draped a throw blanket over her and tucked her in, he thought back to her words in the woods when he'd lifted her into his arms.

_'Don't let go,'_ she'd said.

Kneeling beside her, Sonic brushed some hair off her forehead and leaned in close. "I'll never let you go, Alex," he whispered. "Never."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed! This story is only Book 1 of a three-part series, so I will be marking this now as a series. If you enjoyed this, please consider... subscribing...? I guess... and keep an eye out for Book 2, which will be titled Sonic REMgaged. I'll start posting that whenever I have more chapters under my belt.


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